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Bub13 · 07-21-2018, 11:46 AM

PLAYOFFS 2043

For the first time in our ten-year history, we open MLB's playoff season with the endearing fun of the Wildcard Game. We're hosting last season's AL champs, Miami, in the winner take all funfest. Wild Card Bragging Rights! Woo! Anyway... The Marlins finished 83-79, down 9 games from last year's division-winning mark. They were a good all-around team, finishing 6th in offense and 7th in pitching. 3B Sergio Torres had a torrid season, going .274/47/133, while Ricky Beard and Trey Joslin each contributed over 30 HR. They are missing 2B Dan Callender, who hit .354 before going out for the season in early June. Fill-in Antonio Espinoza did quite well, slashing .290/.381/.370 and adding 20 steals from the leadoff position. More important, ace starter Levi Brady is out for this game, so they'll go with #3 starter Pete Burke instead. (Mr. #2 Starter pitched the final game of the season, winning it and putting them into the playoffs, fyi.)

AL Wildcard: 10/6, Miami @ Hawaii. Pete Burke (13-9, 4.74) vs Jonathan Murray (15-7 4.27). Down 1-0 in the 2nd, a walk to Mercedes and a double by Bowman put Islanders on 2nd and 3rd. Canning's grounder to first brought home Mercedes and tied it. Miami loaded the bases with one out in the third, and brought one run home on a sac fly, but a soft grounder to the pitcher ended the threat. We scored again in the bottom of the inning, when Hart singled, stole 2nd, and went to third on a fly out to right. Masuda singled him home, then Wright capped the inning with a 2-run shot into the LF bleachers. 4-2 good guys after three. We got two more runners on in the 5th but couldn't score them, and things tightened up in the next frame with a Javier Cuellar solo HR off Murray. Both teams got runners to 2nd in the next couple of frames, and we went to the 9th up by a run. YT Yaung ended the affair with an 8-pitch, 2 strikeout inning, and we're off to the next round! Hawaii WINS series, 1-0

NL Wildcard: 10/7, Austin @ St Louis. Geoff Olsson (13-8, 3.96) vs Ken Clark (10-8, 3.09). Tied at 4 through five innings, the Cards added one in the sixth, then blew the game open with four in the 7th, and ended all uncertainty by adding insurance in the 8th. Cards 3B Bernie Belcher had a HR and 4 RBI, and closer Curt Nichols pitched two solid innings to close it out. St Louis WINS series, 1-0

......

In the AL divisional round our opponent is...Oakland. Of course it is. We went 5-10 against the A's this year, more than accounting for the four games we lost the division by. We hit just .261 (vs .285 overall) with 9 HR against them. So it's time to step it up. I'm sure you're quite familiar with these guys by now: best offense, 4th in pitching, and led by likely AL MVP Vinny Vargas, who won his 2nd AL batting crown and led all of baseball with a 10.3 WAR. In addition, they're the only team in the AL with four qualified starters with ERA below the league average (which was an ugly-looking 4.77). The A's took 2 out of 3 from us in late September, to clinch the division. Let's get ours back.

Game One: HAW @ OAK, 10/8: Rob Hart (12-5, 3.89) vs Ricky Hose (14-8, 4.48). We scored three in the 2nd, and took a 3-2 lead into the top of the 7th. Things got crazy after that. We chased reliever Kyle Labate with two quick baserunners, then with one out, we went 3-run-HR/single/walk/wild pitch/single/sac fly to add five runs in all and extend the lead to 8-2. Oakland got two back in the bottom half, but we added one more in the 8th to push the score to 9-4. The A's then added their own 3-run HR (and another run to boot), and suddenly it's a one-run game, 9-8. Mike Hunter, tho, came up huge in the 9th with a 2-run double, and then scored on J.Hart's single. Final score: 12-8. Hawaii 1, Oakland 0

Game Two: HAW @ OAK, 10/9: Eric Jones (11-10, 5.31) vs Mike Wiater (16-9, 3.02). Surprise, surprise! This one ended early, as we went up 6-1 after four and coasted the rest of the way to a 7-1 win. J.Hart homered, and McArthur hit two two-run singles. Jones allowed six hits and fanned 5 through six innings, and Stanley whiffed five in three innings of relief. Stunning start to this series. Hawaii 2, Oakland 0

Game Three: OAK @ HAW, 10/11: Francisco Pantaleon (0-0, 0.00) vs Jonathan Murray (1-0, 4.50). This one got away from us, as Murray isn't up to snuff today and is pulled in the fourth already down 6-3. We did add three in the bottom half, thanks to a couple of walks and singles. But Jordan Coronado doubled home a run in the 7th, while we couldn't get anyone past 2nd base over the last five innings. Ten hits for each team, and we had more baserunners, but not at the right times, especially late. Final score: 7-6. Hawaii 2, Oakland 1

Game Four: OAK @ HAW, 10/12: Rick Hose (0-1, 8.10) vs Pete Morrow (0-0, 0.00). Tied at three in the bottom of the sixth, Wright and Mercedes hit back-to-back solo shots, and a Bowman triple brings home McArthur for a 6-3 lead and ecstasy in the stands. Four hits in the 7th plates two more, and we add another in the 8th. Two strikeouts and a fielder's choice in the ninth end it, and Oakland is going home losers. HA! COUNT IT! Final score: 10-3. Hawaii WINS series, 3-1

Elsewhere, Minnesota topped the Rays in four, and the Dodgers swept the Cardinals away. New Orleans took a tight five-game series from Philadelphia, thanks to a 7th-inning game five sac fly, leading to a 3-2 victory.

......

Our AL championship opponents are Minnesota, against whom we went 5-1. The Twins had a very similar--but slightly less good on paper--season compared to us, finishing 91-71, while being fourth in offense and 10th in pitching. With seven pitchers on the DL, it's a wonder the staff hasn't fallen apart, so props to them, I guess. SS Dave Holbrook led the team with a .308 average, but they also hit a ton of home runs: Paul Foster (39), Brendan Glenn (35), Danny Baca (27), and two others over 20. The Twins last took the AL pennant in 2019, so they're motivated to end that drought.

Game One: HAW @ MIN, 10/16: Rob Hart (1-0, 5.40) vs Milt Schott (0-0, 0.00). Every inning but one had at least one run scored. We scored two right off the bat thanks to two hits, then the Twins got one back in the bottom of the 2nd. We left two on in the third without scoring, and Minny took advantage by adding one to tie it up in the bottom half. No one scored in the 4th, but the quiet ended there. Carrillo singled home Hunter in the 5th: 3-2 us. Three hits in the bottom of the 6th plated two for the Twins: 4-3 Minny. Wright's 3-run HR and four more hits brought home FIVE in the 7th for the good guys: 8-4 Hawaii. Peanuts Carter managed a two-run HR in the 8th to tighten butts across the Islands: 8-6 Hawaii. With two outs in the ninth, RJ Hernandez hit a solo shot, and singles by Baca and Holbrook put runners on the corners: now a one-run game. Blessedly, Brendan Glenn grounded out weakly to second, and we survived game one, 8-7. Hawaii 1, Minnesota 0

Game Two: HAW @ MIN, 10/17: Eric Jones (1-0, 1.50) vs Armando Rivera (0-0, 2.45). Take away the sixth inning, and this is a one-run game. Unfortunately, three Islander pitchers gave up nine runs that inning, making this one a 14-4 laugher. Glenn made up for his 9th inning failure in game one by smacking five hits. At least we won one on the road. Series tied, 1-1

Game Three: MIN @ HAW, 10/19: Bob Knapp (1-0, 2.57) vs Jonathan Murray (1-0, 8.38). Glenn hits another HR for Minny, but that's their only highlight. Carrillo's 3-run shot in the 2nd sparks a six run inning, and Mercedes 3-run blast in turn in the 4th leads to five more. Three hits apiece for Carrillo and Wright, and Murray rebounds with a 4-hit, 6-inning effort. Final score: 11-2. Hawaii 2, Minnesota 1

Game Four: MIN @ HAW, 10/20: Dale Brooks (0-0, 0.00) vs Pete Morrow (0-0, 7.26). We spot the Twins an early one run lead, after Paul Foster's solo HR in the 2nd. McArthur counters with a 3-run blast in the bottom of the 2nd; we add another run in the 5th, and two each in the 6th and 7th. A few more meaningless runs cross both plates in the final innings, but we come out of this with an easy 9-4 win. Four hits for Carrillo, three for Bowman, and two hits with 4 RBI for McArthur. Morrow was pulled with one out in the 9th, but looked better than his previous playoff start, allowing 7 hits and fanning 6. Hawaii 3, Minnesota 1

Game Five: MIN @ HAW, 10/21: Milt Schott (0-0, 1.93) vs Rob Hart (1-0, 6.00). After Rob Hart allowed two runners in the 1st but let no Twins score, Joseph Hart smacks a deep HR to center-right, bringing two runs home and giving us an early lead. In the second, four straight singles bring home two more Islander runners, and after two we're up 4-0. Paul Foster gets one back with a solo HR in the 5th, but Rob Hart is money tonight and shuts the door after that, allowing just three hits and one run (with 9 K) in 8 innings...and WHAT DO YOU KNOW we're going back to the World Series! Final score: 4-1. Hawaii WINS 4-1!

In the NL...New Orleans shot out to a 3-0 series lead, but the Dodgers clawed back by winning games 4 and 5. Game six was a quiet 2-1 affair until the 8th, when the Zephs blew things open with 2 runs in the 8th and 4 more in the 9th. LA got back 3 in the bottom of the ninth, but it wasn't enough, and the Zephs take game six 7-5 and the series 4 games to 2. This will be their second Series trip in the last four seasons.

......

2043 WORLD SERIES

How fitting, that in each franchise's tenth year of existence, Hawaii and New Orleans face each other in the World Series. Each team has claimed one championship already, Hawaii in 2039 and New Orleans the following year. The Zephs had a decent offense, 7th in the NL, and 5th in HR. CF Pat Barnes hit .302 with 13 HR from the leadoff spot, and Jose Rodriguez and Dan Martin combined for 74 HR and 124 HR in the 3 and 4 spots. RF Jonathan Emilien (.282/29/75) got hurt in the LA series and will miss the finals. The real team strength, however, is pitching: NL best (595 runs allowed), with the 2nd best rotation and top bullpen. Ace Sam Kennedy went 12-2 (over 20 starts) with a 2.90 ERA, and Sam Thompson kicked in for 13-9, 2.98. Chad Akers won 17 games, and tossed a one-hitter against the Dodgers in the NL championship series. Closer Justin Huggins saved 43, with a 1.95 ERA and 0.93 WHIP. Top defense in the NL too. This is a tough, well-balanced team. Better than us, I think...

Game One: NOZ @ HAW, 10/26: Sam Kennedy (0-1, 2.70) vs Rob Hart (2-0, 4.05). Another quick start for us, with Masuda knocking a 2-run shot in the 1st, and a Bowman triple leading to two more in the 2nd. New Orleans got two back in the third, but a couple of singles brings another Islander home in the third. We add one more meaningless run in the 8th, and game one is over: 6-2 final score. A complete game 9-hit, 11-K effort from Hart. Hawaii 1, New Orleans 0

Game Two: NOZ @ HAW, 10/27: Sam Thompson (2-1, 2.37) vs Jonathan Murray (2-0, 6.32). Drama! Despite us outhitting the Zephs, they scratch out single runs in the 2nd, 3rd, and 6th, building a 3-1 lead. Our starter, Murray, goes out with an injury in the 6th, and it's a pensive time in Kamehameha Park. Mercedes singles in the 8th, but doesn't advance. Kieffer allows a hit in the top of the ninth, but shuts things down and we head to the bottom of the inning down 3-1. Last chance. With premier closer Justin Huggins on the mound: Bowman singles, PH Joel Jacoby walks, Mike Hunter pops out, and (why?) Huggins is replaced by former ace-SP-turned-RP Drew Falconbury. He promptly strikes out Joseph Hart. Two outs, tying runs on. Carrillo's up: he walks! Masuda comes to the plate, fouls off his first pitch. Then...blasts a 420-foot GRAND SLAM to bring 'em all home and WIN THE GAME. Wow. Final score: 5-3. Hawaii 2, New Orleans 0

(After the game, we get Murray's diagnosis: bone chips in his elbow, out for 5-6 months. Hoo boy. Somebody scrubby is gonna get a start in the World Series. NFG.)

Game Three: HAW @ NOZ, 10/29: Eric Jones (1-1, 2.70) vs Chad Akers (2-1, 2.84). Akers is pulled in the fourth with a blister, but we can only manage six hits against five Zephs pitchers...and no runs, alas. Jones gives up 11 hits, but only one run. Quite a pitcher's duel, and the series is tight again. Final score: 2-1. Hawaii 2, New Orleans 1

Game Four: HAW @ NOZ, 10/30: Pete Morrow (1-0, 5.25) vs Jimmy Porreca (1-1, 6.75). Another pitcher's duel...With a runner on 2nd, in the 2nd, McArthur doubles him home and we're up 1-0. Next inning, bases empty, and Mike Hunter lines a shot into the left field stands: 2-0 Islanders! Morrow, meanwhile, is cruising along, and allows no one past second until the 7th. A triple and single cuts our lead to one, but we escape with no further damage. Morrow walks the leadoff batter in the 8th, but a K and two groundouts ends the inning. In the ninth, closer Yaung comes in for Morrow and strikes out the first two batters. With catcher Manny Vigil batting, and a 2-2 count, Vigil fouls off a pitch. And another. And another. And then...hits a soft, sinking fly ball into left that Carrillo just manages to...catch! He's out! Game over, and we win! Final score: 2-1. One game away from glory! Hawaii 3, New Orleans 1

Game Five: HAW @ NOZ, 10/31: Rob Hart (3-0, 3.41) vs Sam Kennedy (0-2, 4.20). Hart goes on short rest, and is nearly magic through seven: 4 H, 1 R, 10 K. But he tires, and is pulled with a 2-1 lead. Kieffer gets us through the 8th, allowing no runners. We go quietly in the 9th, setting up another date for closer YT Yaung to close the door. And he...doesn't. With one out, Dan Martin singles, then Matt Powell cracks the first pitch he sees into the left field stands, and we come oh, so close... Final score: 3-2 Zephs. Hawaii 3, New Orleans 2

Game Six: NOZ @ HAW, 11/2: Sam Thompson (2-1, 2.16) vs Eric Plummer (0-0, 0.00). Plummer is the emergency starter, sigh. He does okay, though, allowing 5 hits through six innings, but he does walk 6. Six! He leaves with us down 2-1, replaced by Pat Stanley. Sadly, with two outs and the bases loaded, former Islander Nate Hullinger doubles home two runs, making it a 4-1 game. We manage four hits in the bottom of the inning, but can only plate one, and are hurt by having a runner thrown out at third. We get another runner in the 8th, and one in the 9th, but no one advances to second base, and just like that, it all comes down to one last game. Final score: 4-2 Zephs. Series tied, 3-3

(Mike Hunter gets hurt, and while his diagnosis is only pending, he'll miss game seven. Crap.)

Game Seven: NOZ @ HAW, 11/3: Justin Ross (0-0, 0.00) vs Eric Jones (1-2, 2.12). This is it. Game seven, what everyone imagines they want to see, unless you're a nervous GM who would prefer to have four solid blowouts instead... With Hunter out, Carrillo moves into the leadoff spot, and Bobby Layne--with just 10 PA for us this season--plays short and bats last. Oddly, the Zephs seem forced (?) to start Justin Ross, who made six appearances in the bigs this year. (Thompson and Kennedy are tired, Akers is out, and Porreca stinks. Ok, then.) Let's get started... Jones sets down the side to open the festivities. In our half, Carrillo opens things with a double. J.Hart comes up, and fouls off five straight pitches before he gets around on one and puts it into the right field seats. 2-0 good guys! Jones walks one in the 2nd, but no one scores. Our turn again, and Mercedes leads off with a single and goes to second on an error by the third baseman. Bowman bunts the runners over, and then Layne's fly ball to right brings Mercedes home. 3-0! Carrillo walks, and J.Hart singles to left, bringing Canning home from second base. 4-0! New Orleans claws one back in the third, while leaving one runner on. We go 1-2-3 in the bottom half. It's 4-1 Islanders a third of the way through. Two more hits for the Zephs in the fourth...but no runs. Phew. Bottom of the 4th, Canning doubles, scores on a Layne (!) double, then Layne scores in turn on a throwing error. 6-1! Carrillo clocks a solo HR, and it's now 7-1. Top of the fifth, and the Zephs leave two more runners on. Maybe it's our day! Sixth inning, and shaky MR JS Yee comes in. He walks the leadoff batter, but a whiff and a fly ball later, it's two outs and I'm feeling okay. Then, after a single, up comes Nate Hullinger (him again!). Two pitches later, there's a souvenir ball in the left field seats, and the score is 7-4. Sigh. Visions of Bullpen Meltdowns Past flash before my fevered vision. Thankfully, there's no more damage done. Cut to our half of the 6th, and with a man on second, Bobby Layne comes up and clouts another double, bringing the runner home. 8-4! Joseph Hart singles again, which scores Layne, and we're back to a 5-run lead. That's enough craziness for one game, right? Wrong. Top of the 7th, Pat Stanley on the mound. One out. A walk. Another walk. Former #1 overall pick Josh Suprenant comes to the plate and...lines the first pitch over the left field fence. WTF PEOPLE, a 9-7 game now. We get out of the inning, but everyone is stunned. Each team can only put a runner on first in their next frame: our 7th, their 8th. We go meekly in the bottom of the 8th. So. Top of the ninth, and we once again go to closer YT Yaung, he of the Game Five anti-heroics. Two-run lead. The whole season is on the line. First batter, Dan Martin: he swings at a 3-0 pitch and...grounds out to first. Suprenant--a .239-hitting part-time player this year--lines a single to center. LF Matt Powell--batting .450 this series--comes up: he smacks a liner to center...but it hangs up just enough and is caught by Hart for out #2. Runner holds at first. Two outs, 2B Jared Russell comes up, and takes a first pitch strike. He swings at the second pitch, runner moving...and hits a grounder right at second baseman Bowman, who fires to first AND IT'S OVER. THE HAWAII ISLANDERS ARE ONCE AGAIN WORLD CHAMPIONS! Final score: 9-7. Hawaii WIN series 4-3!

Sen Masuda is named World Series MVP, for going .444 with 2 HR and 6 RBI. I would've made the case for Rob Hart, who went 16 innings, with a 1.69 ERA and 21 K in his two starts. Joseph Hart also hit .357, with a HR and 6 RBI. And major props to Bobby Layne, who had 3 PA in the playoffs until game six, then went 4-for-6 with 2 doubles and 4 RBI, filling in for Hunter. Sometimes a career .265 hitter with 0.4 lifetime WAR becomes a hero, right?

......

Crazy. What a crazy season. It was hard not to despair after an 8-15 April, and again after losing Adam Groff for the season back in May. And after ace SP Mike Messinger went out in July. But once we beat Oakland in the divisional round, I thought we had a very real chance to take it all. Of course, I've had better teams in the past that didn't even make the Series, so what does it matter what I think?

Looking ahead to the off-season, there may be some major--MAJOR--changes afoot. We've got 140.8M in salaries committed for 2044, which we just can't afford. That's assuming our arbitration estimes are correct (they won't be) and we don't offer contracts to our six pending free agents. But in the meantime, plan the parade route and stock up on champagne. It's time to party!

07-21-2018, 11:46 AM	#163
Bub13 All Star Reserve Join Date: Apr 2014 Location: Maine Posts: 748	PLAYOFFS 2043 For the first time in our ten-year history, we open MLB's playoff season with the endearing fun of the Wildcard Game. We're hosting last season's AL champs, Miami, in the winner take all funfest. Wild Card Bragging Rights! Woo! Anyway... The Marlins finished 83-79, down 9 games from last year's division-winning mark. They were a good all-around team, finishing 6th in offense and 7th in pitching. 3B Sergio Torres had a torrid season, going .274/47/133, while Ricky Beard and Trey Joslin each contributed over 30 HR. They are missing 2B Dan Callender, who hit .354 before going out for the season in early June. Fill-in Antonio Espinoza did quite well, slashing .290/.381/.370 and adding 20 steals from the leadoff position. More important, ace starter Levi Brady is out for this game, so they'll go with #3 starter Pete Burke instead. (Mr. #2 Starter pitched the final game of the season, winning it and putting them into the playoffs, fyi.) AL Wildcard: 10/6, Miami @ Hawaii. Pete Burke (13-9, 4.74) vs Jonathan Murray (15-7 4.27). Down 1-0 in the 2nd, a walk to Mercedes and a double by Bowman put Islanders on 2nd and 3rd. Canning's grounder to first brought home Mercedes and tied it. Miami loaded the bases with one out in the third, and brought one run home on a sac fly, but a soft grounder to the pitcher ended the threat. We scored again in the bottom of the inning, when Hart singled, stole 2nd, and went to third on a fly out to right. Masuda singled him home, then Wright capped the inning with a 2-run shot into the LF bleachers. 4-2 good guys after three. We got two more runners on in the 5th but couldn't score them, and things tightened up in the next frame with a Javier Cuellar solo HR off Murray. Both teams got runners to 2nd in the next couple of frames, and we went to the 9th up by a run. YT Yaung ended the affair with an 8-pitch, 2 strikeout inning, and we're off to the next round! Hawaii WINS series, 1-0 NL Wildcard: 10/7, Austin @ St Louis. Geoff Olsson (13-8, 3.96) vs Ken Clark (10-8, 3.09). Tied at 4 through five innings, the Cards added one in the sixth, then blew the game open with four in the 7th, and ended all uncertainty by adding insurance in the 8th. Cards 3B Bernie Belcher had a HR and 4 RBI, and closer Curt Nichols pitched two solid innings to close it out. St Louis WINS series, 1-0 ...... In the AL divisional round our opponent is...Oakland. Of course it is. We went 5-10 against the A's this year, more than accounting for the four games we lost the division by. We hit just .261 (vs .285 overall) with 9 HR against them. So it's time to step it up. I'm sure you're quite familiar with these guys by now: best offense, 4th in pitching, and led by likely AL MVP Vinny Vargas, who won his 2nd AL batting crown and led all of baseball with a 10.3 WAR. In addition, they're the only team in the AL with four qualified starters with ERA below the league average (which was an ugly-looking 4.77). The A's took 2 out of 3 from us in late September, to clinch the division. Let's get ours back. Game One: HAW @ OAK, 10/8: Rob Hart (12-5, 3.89) vs Ricky Hose (14-8, 4.48). We scored three in the 2nd, and took a 3-2 lead into the top of the 7th. Things got crazy after that. We chased reliever Kyle Labate with two quick baserunners, then with one out, we went 3-run-HR/single/walk/wild pitch/single/sac fly to add five runs in all and extend the lead to 8-2. Oakland got two back in the bottom half, but we added one more in the 8th to push the score to 9-4. The A's then added their own 3-run HR (and another run to boot), and suddenly it's a one-run game, 9-8. Mike Hunter, tho, came up huge in the 9th with a 2-run double, and then scored on J.Hart's single. Final score: 12-8. Hawaii 1, Oakland 0 Game Two: HAW @ OAK, 10/9: Eric Jones (11-10, 5.31) vs Mike Wiater (16-9, 3.02). Surprise, surprise! This one ended early, as we went up 6-1 after four and coasted the rest of the way to a 7-1 win. J.Hart homered, and McArthur hit two two-run singles. Jones allowed six hits and fanned 5 through six innings, and Stanley whiffed five in three innings of relief. Stunning start to this series. Hawaii 2, Oakland 0 Game Three: OAK @ HAW, 10/11: Francisco Pantaleon (0-0, 0.00) vs Jonathan Murray (1-0, 4.50). This one got away from us, as Murray isn't up to snuff today and is pulled in the fourth already down 6-3. We did add three in the bottom half, thanks to a couple of walks and singles. But Jordan Coronado doubled home a run in the 7th, while we couldn't get anyone past 2nd base over the last five innings. Ten hits for each team, and we had more baserunners, but not at the right times, especially late. Final score: 7-6. Hawaii 2, Oakland 1 Game Four: OAK @ HAW, 10/12: Rick Hose (0-1, 8.10) vs Pete Morrow (0-0, 0.00). Tied at three in the bottom of the sixth, Wright and Mercedes hit back-to-back solo shots, and a Bowman triple brings home McArthur for a 6-3 lead and ecstasy in the stands. Four hits in the 7th plates two more, and we add another in the 8th. Two strikeouts and a fielder's choice in the ninth end it, and Oakland is going home losers. HA! COUNT IT! Final score: 10-3. Hawaii WINS series, 3-1 Elsewhere, Minnesota topped the Rays in four, and the Dodgers swept the Cardinals away. New Orleans took a tight five-game series from Philadelphia, thanks to a 7th-inning game five sac fly, leading to a 3-2 victory. ...... Our AL championship opponents are Minnesota, against whom we went 5-1. The Twins had a very similar--but slightly less good on paper--season compared to us, finishing 91-71, while being fourth in offense and 10th in pitching. With seven pitchers on the DL, it's a wonder the staff hasn't fallen apart, so props to them, I guess. SS Dave Holbrook led the team with a .308 average, but they also hit a ton of home runs: Paul Foster (39), Brendan Glenn (35), Danny Baca (27), and two others over 20. The Twins last took the AL pennant in 2019, so they're motivated to end that drought. Game One: HAW @ MIN, 10/16: Rob Hart (1-0, 5.40) vs Milt Schott (0-0, 0.00). Every inning but one had at least one run scored. We scored two right off the bat thanks to two hits, then the Twins got one back in the bottom of the 2nd. We left two on in the third without scoring, and Minny took advantage by adding one to tie it up in the bottom half. No one scored in the 4th, but the quiet ended there. Carrillo singled home Hunter in the 5th: 3-2 us. Three hits in the bottom of the 6th plated two for the Twins: 4-3 Minny. Wright's 3-run HR and four more hits brought home FIVE in the 7th for the good guys: 8-4 Hawaii. Peanuts Carter managed a two-run HR in the 8th to tighten butts across the Islands: 8-6 Hawaii. With two outs in the ninth, RJ Hernandez hit a solo shot, and singles by Baca and Holbrook put runners on the corners: now a one-run game. Blessedly, Brendan Glenn grounded out weakly to second, and we survived game one, 8-7. Hawaii 1, Minnesota 0 Game Two: HAW @ MIN, 10/17: Eric Jones (1-0, 1.50) vs Armando Rivera (0-0, 2.45). Take away the sixth inning, and this is a one-run game. Unfortunately, three Islander pitchers gave up nine runs that inning, making this one a 14-4 laugher. Glenn made up for his 9th inning failure in game one by smacking five hits. At least we won one on the road. Series tied, 1-1 Game Three: MIN @ HAW, 10/19: Bob Knapp (1-0, 2.57) vs Jonathan Murray (1-0, 8.38). Glenn hits another HR for Minny, but that's their only highlight. Carrillo's 3-run shot in the 2nd sparks a six run inning, and Mercedes 3-run blast in turn in the 4th leads to five more. Three hits apiece for Carrillo and Wright, and Murray rebounds with a 4-hit, 6-inning effort. Final score: 11-2. Hawaii 2, Minnesota 1 Game Four: MIN @ HAW, 10/20: Dale Brooks (0-0, 0.00) vs Pete Morrow (0-0, 7.26). We spot the Twins an early one run lead, after Paul Foster's solo HR in the 2nd. McArthur counters with a 3-run blast in the bottom of the 2nd; we add another run in the 5th, and two each in the 6th and 7th. A few more meaningless runs cross both plates in the final innings, but we come out of this with an easy 9-4 win. Four hits for Carrillo, three for Bowman, and two hits with 4 RBI for McArthur. Morrow was pulled with one out in the 9th, but looked better than his previous playoff start, allowing 7 hits and fanning 6. Hawaii 3, Minnesota 1 Game Five: MIN @ HAW, 10/21: Milt Schott (0-0, 1.93) vs Rob Hart (1-0, 6.00). After Rob Hart allowed two runners in the 1st but let no Twins score, Joseph Hart smacks a deep HR to center-right, bringing two runs home and giving us an early lead. In the second, four straight singles bring home two more Islander runners, and after two we're up 4-0. Paul Foster gets one back with a solo HR in the 5th, but Rob Hart is money tonight and shuts the door after that, allowing just three hits and one run (with 9 K) in 8 innings...and WHAT DO YOU KNOW we're going back to the World Series! Final score: 4-1. Hawaii WINS 4-1! In the NL...New Orleans shot out to a 3-0 series lead, but the Dodgers clawed back by winning games 4 and 5. Game six was a quiet 2-1 affair until the 8th, when the Zephs blew things open with 2 runs in the 8th and 4 more in the 9th. LA got back 3 in the bottom of the ninth, but it wasn't enough, and the Zephs take game six 7-5 and the series 4 games to 2. This will be their second Series trip in the last four seasons. ...... 2043 WORLD SERIES How fitting, that in each franchise's tenth year of existence, Hawaii and New Orleans face each other in the World Series. Each team has claimed one championship already, Hawaii in 2039 and New Orleans the following year. The Zephs had a decent offense, 7th in the NL, and 5th in HR. CF Pat Barnes hit .302 with 13 HR from the leadoff spot, and Jose Rodriguez and Dan Martin combined for 74 HR and 124 HR in the 3 and 4 spots. RF Jonathan Emilien (.282/29/75) got hurt in the LA series and will miss the finals. The real team strength, however, is pitching: NL best (595 runs allowed), with the 2nd best rotation and top bullpen. Ace Sam Kennedy went 12-2 (over 20 starts) with a 2.90 ERA, and Sam Thompson kicked in for 13-9, 2.98. Chad Akers won 17 games, and tossed a one-hitter against the Dodgers in the NL championship series. Closer Justin Huggins saved 43, with a 1.95 ERA and 0.93 WHIP. Top defense in the NL too. This is a tough, well-balanced team. Better than us, I think... Game One: NOZ @ HAW, 10/26: Sam Kennedy (0-1, 2.70) vs Rob Hart (2-0, 4.05). Another quick start for us, with Masuda knocking a 2-run shot in the 1st, and a Bowman triple leading to two more in the 2nd. New Orleans got two back in the third, but a couple of singles brings another Islander home in the third. We add one more meaningless run in the 8th, and game one is over: 6-2 final score. A complete game 9-hit, 11-K effort from Hart. Hawaii 1, New Orleans 0 Game Two: NOZ @ HAW, 10/27: Sam Thompson (2-1, 2.37) vs Jonathan Murray (2-0, 6.32). Drama! Despite us outhitting the Zephs, they scratch out single runs in the 2nd, 3rd, and 6th, building a 3-1 lead. Our starter, Murray, goes out with an injury in the 6th, and it's a pensive time in Kamehameha Park. Mercedes singles in the 8th, but doesn't advance. Kieffer allows a hit in the top of the ninth, but shuts things down and we head to the bottom of the inning down 3-1. Last chance. With premier closer Justin Huggins on the mound: Bowman singles, PH Joel Jacoby walks, Mike Hunter pops out, and (why?) Huggins is replaced by former ace-SP-turned-RP Drew Falconbury. He promptly strikes out Joseph Hart. Two outs, tying runs on. Carrillo's up: he walks! Masuda comes to the plate, fouls off his first pitch. Then...blasts a 420-foot GRAND SLAM to bring 'em all home and WIN THE GAME. Wow. Final score: 5-3. Hawaii 2, New Orleans 0 (After the game, we get Murray's diagnosis: bone chips in his elbow, out for 5-6 months. Hoo boy. Somebody scrubby is gonna get a start in the World Series. NFG.) Game Three: HAW @ NOZ, 10/29: Eric Jones (1-1, 2.70) vs Chad Akers (2-1, 2.84). Akers is pulled in the fourth with a blister, but we can only manage six hits against five Zephs pitchers...and no runs, alas. Jones gives up 11 hits, but only one run. Quite a pitcher's duel, and the series is tight again. Final score: 2-1. Hawaii 2, New Orleans 1 Game Four: HAW @ NOZ, 10/30: Pete Morrow (1-0, 5.25) vs Jimmy Porreca (1-1, 6.75). Another pitcher's duel...With a runner on 2nd, in the 2nd, McArthur doubles him home and we're up 1-0. Next inning, bases empty, and Mike Hunter lines a shot into the left field stands: 2-0 Islanders! Morrow, meanwhile, is cruising along, and allows no one past second until the 7th. A triple and single cuts our lead to one, but we escape with no further damage. Morrow walks the leadoff batter in the 8th, but a K and two groundouts ends the inning. In the ninth, closer Yaung comes in for Morrow and strikes out the first two batters. With catcher Manny Vigil batting, and a 2-2 count, Vigil fouls off a pitch. And another. And another. And then...hits a soft, sinking fly ball into left that Carrillo just manages to...catch! He's out! Game over, and we win! Final score: 2-1. One game away from glory! Hawaii 3, New Orleans 1 Game Five: HAW @ NOZ, 10/31: Rob Hart (3-0, 3.41) vs Sam Kennedy (0-2, 4.20). Hart goes on short rest, and is nearly magic through seven: 4 H, 1 R, 10 K. But he tires, and is pulled with a 2-1 lead. Kieffer gets us through the 8th, allowing no runners. We go quietly in the 9th, setting up another date for closer YT Yaung to close the door. And he...doesn't. With one out, Dan Martin singles, then Matt Powell cracks the first pitch he sees into the left field stands, and we come oh, so close... Final score: 3-2 Zephs. Hawaii 3, New Orleans 2 Game Six: NOZ @ HAW, 11/2: Sam Thompson (2-1, 2.16) vs Eric Plummer (0-0, 0.00). Plummer is the emergency starter, sigh. He does okay, though, allowing 5 hits through six innings, but he does walk 6. Six! He leaves with us down 2-1, replaced by Pat Stanley. Sadly, with two outs and the bases loaded, former Islander Nate Hullinger doubles home two runs, making it a 4-1 game. We manage four hits in the bottom of the inning, but can only plate one, and are hurt by having a runner thrown out at third. We get another runner in the 8th, and one in the 9th, but no one advances to second base, and just like that, it all comes down to one last game. Final score: 4-2 Zephs. Series tied, 3-3 (Mike Hunter gets hurt, and while his diagnosis is only pending, he'll miss game seven. Crap.) Game Seven: NOZ @ HAW, 11/3: Justin Ross (0-0, 0.00) vs Eric Jones (1-2, 2.12). This is it. Game seven, what everyone imagines they want to see, unless you're a nervous GM who would prefer to have four solid blowouts instead... With Hunter out, Carrillo moves into the leadoff spot, and Bobby Layne--with just 10 PA for us this season--plays short and bats last. Oddly, the Zephs seem forced (?) to start Justin Ross, who made six appearances in the bigs this year. (Thompson and Kennedy are tired, Akers is out, and Porreca stinks. Ok, then.) Let's get started... Jones sets down the side to open the festivities. In our half, Carrillo opens things with a double. J.Hart comes up, and fouls off five straight pitches before he gets around on one and puts it into the right field seats. 2-0 good guys! Jones walks one in the 2nd, but no one scores. Our turn again, and Mercedes leads off with a single and goes to second on an error by the third baseman. Bowman bunts the runners over, and then Layne's fly ball to right brings Mercedes home. 3-0! Carrillo walks, and J.Hart singles to left, bringing Canning home from second base. 4-0! New Orleans claws one back in the third, while leaving one runner on. We go 1-2-3 in the bottom half. It's 4-1 Islanders a third of the way through. Two more hits for the Zephs in the fourth...but no runs. Phew. Bottom of the 4th, Canning doubles, scores on a Layne (!) double, then Layne scores in turn on a throwing error. 6-1! Carrillo clocks a solo HR, and it's now 7-1. Top of the fifth, and the Zephs leave two more runners on. Maybe it's our day! Sixth inning, and shaky MR JS Yee comes in. He walks the leadoff batter, but a whiff and a fly ball later, it's two outs and I'm feeling okay. Then, after a single, up comes Nate Hullinger (him again!). Two pitches later, there's a souvenir ball in the left field seats, and the score is 7-4. Sigh. Visions of Bullpen Meltdowns Past flash before my fevered vision. Thankfully, there's no more damage done. Cut to our half of the 6th, and with a man on second, Bobby Layne comes up and clouts another double, bringing the runner home. 8-4! Joseph Hart singles again, which scores Layne, and we're back to a 5-run lead. That's enough craziness for one game, right? Wrong. Top of the 7th, Pat Stanley on the mound. One out. A walk. Another walk. Former #1 overall pick Josh Suprenant comes to the plate and...lines the first pitch over the left field fence. WTF PEOPLE, a 9-7 game now. We get out of the inning, but everyone is stunned. Each team can only put a runner on first in their next frame: our 7th, their 8th. We go meekly in the bottom of the 8th. So. Top of the ninth, and we once again go to closer YT Yaung, he of the Game Five anti-heroics. Two-run lead. The whole season is on the line. First batter, Dan Martin: he swings at a 3-0 pitch and...grounds out to first. Suprenant--a .239-hitting part-time player this year--lines a single to center. LF Matt Powell--batting .450 this series--comes up: he smacks a liner to center...but it hangs up just enough and is caught by Hart for out #2. Runner holds at first. Two outs, 2B Jared Russell comes up, and takes a first pitch strike. He swings at the second pitch, runner moving...and hits a grounder right at second baseman Bowman, who fires to first AND IT'S OVER. THE HAWAII ISLANDERS ARE ONCE AGAIN WORLD CHAMPIONS! Final score: 9-7. Hawaii WIN series 4-3! Sen Masuda is named World Series MVP, for going .444 with 2 HR and 6 RBI. I would've made the case for Rob Hart, who went 16 innings, with a 1.69 ERA and 21 K in his two starts. Joseph Hart also hit .357, with a HR and 6 RBI. And major props to Bobby Layne, who had 3 PA in the playoffs until game six, then went 4-for-6 with 2 doubles and 4 RBI, filling in for Hunter. Sometimes a career .265 hitter with 0.4 lifetime WAR becomes a hero, right? ...... Crazy. What a crazy season. It was hard not to despair after an 8-15 April, and again after losing Adam Groff for the season back in May. And after ace SP Mike Messinger went out in July. But once we beat Oakland in the divisional round, I thought we had a very real chance to take it all. Of course, I've had better teams in the past that didn't even make the Series, so what does it matter what I think? Looking ahead to the off-season, there may be some major--MAJOR--changes afoot. We've got 140.8M in salaries committed for 2044, which we just can't afford. That's assuming our arbitration estimes are correct (they won't be) and we don't offer contracts to our six pending free agents. But in the meantime, plan the parade route and stock up on champagne. It's time to party! __________________ Introducing Your Hawaii Islanders!