Attachment 640758
Sunday, May 1, 2061
IPA INDUCTS 7 GREATS INTO HOF
Seven Islandian Pro Alliance players have now met the standard of excellence required to be admitted to the coveted and revered Islandian Pro Alliance Hall of Fame... the Broadcasters and Sportswriters Association have voted in these seven legendary performers into the Hall and they will be inducted this fall during the IPA Winter Meeting... the IPA Hall of Fame now numbers 100 immortal players... the latest class includes the winningest pitcher of all-time, James Long, who boasts the most victories in IPA history... and one of the best all-around players in history, first baseman JoJo DeLucca... the rest of the class is Rikky Van Dalen, Corky DiNozzo, Benny Hull, Jason Butler and Jayson Hallstrom.
For the first time in the history of the IPA Hall of Fame, it will become a family affair... JoJo DeLucca will join his father, Joe DeLucca in the Hall of Fame... the elder DeLucca was inducted in 2039.
BIGGEST WINNER EVER LONG INDUCTED IN IPA HALL OF FAME
James Long starred for the Middlefield Roosters for all of his 21 seasons and topped the IPA in all-time victories with 442... he sparked the Roosters to 11 RU West pennants and 2 Pro Cup trophies (2052, 2056).
One of the most colorful characters in league history, Long was also the league's winningest pitcher... he won an extraordinary number of games... more than any other IPA hurlers, by far... Long broke the old league record by 51 wins, racking up a career mark of 442-250... he was a pitcher that no manager ever worried about while he was on the mound... off the field, however, that was another story... Long was quite a character... a wild and crazy guy.
For example, Long was kidding the press corps at team headquarters, pretending to be practicing his HOF speech... "Man, I can just see me now at the Hall of Fame installation... impressively standing on the podium, getting ready to grace the assembled audience with wonderful words about my wondrous career... my beautiful bronze plaque shining in the bright sunshine, gleaming from the fresh polish... everyone clinging to my every precious word... and then I will tell them... man, that guy is handsome!... I never realized I looked so good until today."
James Long retired at the age of 39... he was a 12-time All-Star and record 5-time Golden Arm Award winner (2050, 2054, 2055, 2056, 2057)... in his outstanding career he appeared in 812 games, pitched 6439 innings (1st), fanned 4029 batters (7th), walked 1236 and compiled a 2.68 ERA (14th).
