[Eugene Church]

YESTERDAY IN THE IPA

The Islandian Times
Wednesday, September 24, 2014

8 Teams Begin Quest For 2014 Pro Cup
The regular season set the stage and pruned down the number of title contenders. Now the clubs that made the cut will go at it on the diamond in the 2014 Islandian Pro Alliance playoffs. It's the first step in the race to win the Pro Cup Series trophy. The Elite 8 Series starts today with 8 clubs set to battle in the Elite 8 Series. All series will be best-of-seven.

The Far Mountain Redhawks are the defending IPA Pro Cup titleholder and are back again. Manager Alex Groveland is on a quest for his fourth straight Pro Cup and his Redhawks are the odds-on favorites to do it, but they will have to go through two strong clubs to get there. The Colfax Blasters and the Belair Beach Sunbirds will not be an easy task for Far Mountain. In the Ruthlandian Union Elite 8 the Redhawks will host tough Belair Beach and the Blasters will entertain the unheralded Marston Nine.

Over in the Tycobbian Union there is no clear-cut favorite. The Turon Typhoons are a veteran team with three Pro Cups, however the Midway Wolves, Kenwood Wildcats and Hartsdale Hellcats had to beat out some talented teams to win their division crowns. Turon played in the weakest division and was not really challenged in the regular season. The Typhoons will be at home against Hartsdale and Kenwood will travel to play Midway in the TU Elite 8.


The Islandian Times
Wednesday, September 24, 2014

Scribes and Broadcasters Pick Far Mountain In Pro Cup Poll
If the "folks in the know" know what they are talking about, the Far Mountain Redhawks will capture an unprecedented fourth Pro Cup in a row. In The Islandian Times annual Pro Cup poll Far Mountain was selected as the favorite to win it all again this year. The Redhawks are forecast to whip Colfax in the RU Final 4 and the Midway Wolves are expected to upend 3-time Pro Cup winners, the Turon Typhoons, in the TU Final 4. In a hotly-contested Pro Cup Finals Far Mountain is expected to prevail over the Wolves.

Pro Cup Poll

1. Far Mountain... Alex Groveland still has great starters with Boomerang Hines (22-11 2.41), Robby Kelly (21-10 2.56) and Woody Crawford (22-10 2.66) and a club that is loaded with experience, especially Pro Cup experience... 2B Duane Parsons (.310/25/110/85) and SS Don Nichols (.307/19/92/105) provide the offense... topped the IPA with a 96-58 record... 9th playoff appearance.

2. Colfax... Clem Rogers has two great starters in Ilya Szabo (23-8 1.75) and Jimmy Joe Cartner (25-8 2.56) combined with a fine relief corps... could dethrone Far Mountain if bats produce... best ones are CF Ryan Raines (.294/22/77/84), RF Paul Coniglio (.293/17/72/66), 2B Ilya Ivanchuk (.306/15/72/88) and LF Tony Tanaka (.265/18/67/100)... a close third in victories with a 94-60 record... The Blasters have one Pro Cup in their history... they defeated Turon in seven games in 2010.

3. Midway... first-time playoff team... starters could rival Redhawks... Cochise Chandler has some good ones... Motega Wolf (20-11 2.86), Sherm Jarvis (21-13 2.96) and Johnny Parker (12-9 2.87)... Strong bullpen with closer Dom Vilaggio (8-6 1.93), who had 34 saves... backed up by Lloyd Tatoke (6-0 2.33)... bats must produce for Wolves to win Pro Cup... CF Johnny Lee (.328/32/84/99) and LF Dylan Stevenson (.299/25/92/100) can't do it alone... led Tycobbian Union with a 94-60 mark.

4. Turon... Whitey Richburn still has a fine club with quality pitching and a strong attack... they are making postseason appearance number 9 this season... 1B Clyde Kingsford (.311/39/129/112) and CF Mac McCurnan (.292/28/114/109) carry a lot of clout in the line-up... Nicky Engstrom (24-10 2.44) can go toe-to-toe with anyone, but the Typhoons are not as deep at starting pitching as the other clubs... James Stuart (19-11 3.77) and Jacques Lemaire (17-8 3.64) always seem to step it up in the postseason... If they do, the Typhoons can compete with anybody... winning Pro Cups is a tradition in Turon... they have won 3 Pro Cups and almost a fourth one in 2010, when they blew a 3-1 lead and lost to Colfax.

5. Belair Beach... Marty Pedroza doesn't have a flashy ball club with a bunch of big names, but the Sunbirds score runs and pitch well... they were 95-59, the second-best record in the IPA... top pitchers are Nasty Naymick (19-11 3.21), Denny Whitaker (21-15 3.32) and Wally Green (19-5 3.67)... Closer Groot Tenbrook (5-4) carded 37 saves, tops in the TU, with a 2.76 ERA and just might be the Sunbirds MVP this year... best bats are LF Ron Dizon (.256/27/91/80) and CF Tom Bennett (.283/12/56/103)... 1B Denny Gray is now the full-time 1B... In 65 games he batted .299 with 14 homers and 47 RBIs.

6. Hartsdale... Zim Donner is top-heavy with hitters, but lacks pitching... All he has is starter Ronnie Jernigan (21-10 3.02) and closer Ben Clermont (5-5) with 29 saves and a 2.68 ERA... The Hellcats are really dangerous with the bats with 1B Tom Brabant (.333/36/116/101), SS Jud Turchin (.318/29/83/102), 3B Kendry Moulton (.302/34/104/86), RF Mac Faulkner (.294/24/76/94) and LF Woody Crow (.287/85/98)... as a team Hartsdale hit 191 homers (3rd-tied)... posted an 84-71 record... last playoff appearance was 2009.

7. Kenwood... not enough pitching and hitting to challenge this year... Aaron Hankins only has one quality starter in Connie Gavagan (18-13 3.05), but he has two excellent bullpen specialists... closer Rick Brickell (3-7) has saved 24 games with a 2.66 ERA, while middle reliever Sol Yakis is 10-2 with a 2.99 ERA in 52 relief appearances... The Wildcats depend on RF Dennis Riley (.320/19/87), 3B Brad Walker (.290/14/78), C Gene Verbick (.284/14/74) and LF Jimmy Brewer (.286/22/71) for run production... Kenwood hasn't been in the playoffs since 2002, its first season in the IPA... 86-68 is the best record in team history... made postseason only one previous time in 2002.

8. Marston... The Nine won more games this season than they ever have with an 87-67 mark, mainly with their hitting... Marston led the IPA with a .279 BA... Top batsmen were 3B Jimmy Holman (.337/33/120/93), CF Russ Woodward (.317/23/91/91), LF James Yardley (.294/30/94/67), RF Richie Mazzone (.306/18/72/102) and 1 B Pat Farris (.347/11/64/64)... Marston hasn't won a Pro Cup since 2001 and its been 8 years since they last played in the playoffs... Johnny Walters has two solid pitchers and a fine reliever... Hunk Sweitzer (22-5 2.91) had a career year... Zippy Hodge (20-17 3.08) is a very capable number two man... in the pen Bob Daniel (5-6) has stood out with 30 saves and a 2.67 ERA.


The Islandian Times
Tuesday, September 30, 2014

2014 IPA Elite 8 Series

FM Reign Over, Belair Beach Wins Elite 8
All good things must come to an end... Far Mountain's tremendous run of three consecutive Pro Cup titles has ended at the hands of the inspired Belair Beach Sunbirds, who won a classic 2-1 masterpiece in the seventh game of the RU Elite 8 Series... Both starting pitchers went the distance and neither deserved to lose it... Sunbird Denny Whitaker (2-0 1.80) bested Redhawk Boomerang Hines (0-2 2.63) in a thrilling match... Far Mountain took the lead in the second frame on C Otis Ott's (.231) solo shot and Hines made it stand up until the fatal sixth... CF Billy Martz led off with a single and scored on C Little Jake Bungarooba's triple to knot the score at 1-all... Bungarooba was the goat yesterday when he blew the game on a passed ball, but he was the hero today... Bungarooba scored the winning on 1B Denny Gray high bounder to second base... closer Groot Tenbrook nailed down the game by shutting down the Redhawks in the ninth... Belair Beach has another tough task against the Colfax Blasters in the RU Final 4 Series.


The Islandian Times
Wednesday, October 1, 2014

IPA Final 4s Start Today in Belair Beach And Turon
It's the round of four in the IPA Pro Cup playoffs. The Belair Beach Sunbirds will host the Colfax Blasters in the Ruthlandian Final 4 and the Turon Typhoons will entertain the Kenwood Wildcats in the Tycobbian Final 4. They will be a best-of-seven series with the winners pitted against one another for Islandian pro baseball supremacy.

Belair Beach gets the favorite role in the RU, while Turon gets the nod in the TU. The Sunbirds upset the powerful Far Mountain Redhawks, who had triumphed in the last three Pro Cups. Colfax knocked off the Marston Nine in the Elite 8 Series. The Typhoons, who have 3 Pro Cup titles, whipped Hartsdale to advance to the Final 4 and the Wildcats, making only its second postseason appearance, upended highly-rated Midway in the Elite 8.


The Islandian Times
Monday, October 6, 2014

2014 IPA Pro Cup Final 4 Series

Sunbirds Fly By Colfax, Whitaker Cinches Series
It's been a long wait, but Belair Beach has finally made it to the Pro Cup Finals... Denny Whitaker shut out Colfax 3-0 in game 6 to win the RU Final 4 Series four games to two... Whitaker (3-0 2.45) limited the Blasters to just 4 hits, struck out 6 and walked 4... Rodger Wright (1-1 5.88) pitched well in defeat as he yielded only two earned runs and 7 hits in a complete-game performance... the Sunbirds got to him for single runs in the first, third and fourth frames... Belair Beach will play the winner of the Turon-Kenwood TU Final 4 for the Island championship... the Sunbirds have never advanced this far in the IPA playoffs.

Kenwood Knocks Out Turon 9-7 In Game 6
It will be the Kenwood Wildcats and the Belair Beach Sunbirds in the 2014 IPA Pro Cup Finals... The Wildcats came from behind to eliminate the Typhoons 9-7 in game 6 of the TU Final 4 to win the series in six games... Turon jumped ahead 4-1 in the fifth, but Kenwood fought back and tied it 4-4 in the seventh and then erupted for 5 runs in the eighth to take a commanding 9-4 lead and held off a scary ninth-inning rally by the Typhoons... Turon outgunned them 14 to 10... For the second day in a row Tank Tucker notched the win with a perfect seventh inning... Sol Yakis also picked up the save for the second successive day with ninth-inning relief... the Wildcats had many heroes at the plate... RF Dennis Riley (.318) and 2B Paul Lassak (.375) had 2 RBIs apiece... and 3B Brad Walker (.306) had 2 hits, scored twice and batted in a run... CF Vince Palmer (.280) smacked 3 hits and scored 2 runs... leading the losing Typhoons were RF Andy Porter (.325) with a pair of hits and 3 RBIs, 1B Clyde Kingsford (.311) with 3-5, 2 runs and an RBI and SS Matt Madison (.391) with 2-4 and 2 runs scored... Turon starter Jeb Stuart (2-1 3.91) sustained the loss... Stuart was shelled for 5 runs in 7 innings.


The Islandian Times
Tuesday, October 7, 2014

BB Sunbirds Favored In 2014 Pro Cup
The 2014 IPA Pro Cup Finals begin tomorrow at Bayside Park in Belair Beach. Except for this season both qualifiers have fared poorly in the postseason. In previous years the Belair Beach Sunbirds have made the playoffs five times and never gotten out of the first round. The Kenwood Wildcats have made only one prior postseason appearance in 2002 and were knocked out in the first round. However, this year they find themselves playing for all the marbles. One of them will win its first Pro Cup. Odds-makers have given the nod to the Sunbirds. Manager Marty Pedroza's club was 95-59 during the regular season, second best in the Ruthlandian Union, while Aaron Hankins' Wildcats were only 86-68, which was a distant third in the Tycobbian Union. Baseball analysts say Belair Beach has beaten two powerhouses in 3-time Pro Cup champ Far Mountain and Colfax and has proven to be a top-flight team. The baseball soothsayers qualify their pick by saying Kenwood has proven its worth with victories over Midway and Turon this postseason. Turon has three Pro Cup trophies in its history and came very close to winning a fourth. So the Wildcats have good credentials this season.

Belair Beach has a good offense, fair power, good starters and an excellent closer, while Kenwood has a good offense, decent power, good starters and great relievers. Both clubs are excellent defensively. The forecast is for a hard-fought series with the Sunbirds prevailing.

Belair Beach's top performers are starters Denny Whitaker (21-15 3.32)), Wally Green (19-5 3.67) and Nasty Naymick (15-10 3.21) and closer Groot Tenbrook (5-4 2.76) with 37 saves. At the plate LF Ron Dizon (.256) led the team with 27 homers and 91 RBIs. CF Tom Bennett (.283) had 12 home runs and scored 104 runs.

Kenwood standouts are starters Connie Gavagan (18-13 3.05) and Sammy Shaw (18-12 3.59). In Hankins' superb bullpen are Tank Tucker (9-3 2.76), Sol Yakis (10-2 2.99) and closer Rick Brickell (3-7 2.66) with 24 saves. Yakis and Tucker may get starting assignments in the finals in place of number three starter Todd Combs (14-19 3.46), who has had a rocky postseason. Offensively the Wildcats don't have a star, but they possess a solid bunch of batters throughout the line-up, led by RF Dennis Riley (.320) with 19 homers and 87 RBIs, LF Jimmy Brewer (.286) with 22 roundtrippers and 71 runs batted in and 3B Brad Walker (.290) with 14 long balls and 78 RBIs.


The Islandian Times
Wednesday, October 8, 2014

2014 IPA Pro Cup Series - Game 1

Belair Beach Bombs Kenwood 8-2 in Opener
At Bayside Park in Belair Beach, the Sunbirds bombed Kenwood with 14 hits and a pair of homers in the 8-2 victory in game one of the IPA Pro Cup Series... strong hitting combined with strong pitching made it easy for manager Marty Pedroza's club... Nasty Naymick (3-1 1.65) continued to excel in the playoffs... He stopped the Wildcats on 3 hits and didn't allow an earned run in a complete-game performance... Naymick struck out 7 and walked 3 in an impressive outing... RF Billy Martz (.397) and LF Ron Dizon (.298) both homered and drove in 2 runs... CF Tom Bennett (.288) added 3 hits and 2 runs batted in... Sammy Shaw (2-1 4.45) took the loss, allowing 6 runs and 9 hits in 2+ innings.


The Islandian Times
Thursday, October 9, 2014

2014 IPA Pro Cup Series - Game 2

Wildcats Down Sunbirds 8-6, Series Even
In game two of the IPA Pro Cup Series both teams had their aces on the mound, but it didn't matter much to the hitters... Kenwood outscored Belair Beach 8-6 to even the series at one game apiece in the best-of-seven set... It was a seesaw affair... the Sunbirds went in front 2-0 in the first on LF Ron Dizon's third playoff homer... the Wildcats countered with single runs in the second and third innings and added two more in each of the fifth and seventh, building up a 6-2 lead... but that didn't hold as Belair Beach tied it up in the last half of the inning on Dizon's fourth playoff home run, a bases-loaded blast... 2B Duncan Renwick got the game-winning hit in the top of the eighth, a two-run single.

Tank Tucker (3-0 4.15) got the win as he came on in the seventh and got the final out of the inning... Rick Brickell finished up with 2 perfect innings and got his 4th save... The loss went to Groot Tenbrook (2-2 4.50), who came on in the eighth and allowed 2 runs... Kenwood's top pitcher Connie Gavagan started, but was ineffective... Gavagan was tagged for 6 runs and 8 hits and departed in the seventh... Belair Beach's best hurler Denny Whitaker had a rough outing, too... Whitaker permitted 6 runs and 6 hits and exited in the seventh.

3B Brad Walker (.321) led the Wildcats at the plate with 3-3 and 2 runs scored... Walker belted 2 doubles and a triple... RF Dennis Riley (.302) had a 2-run homer and C Gene Verbick (.260) drove in 2 runs for the winners... Dizon sparked the Sunbirds with his 2 roundtrippers and 6 RBIs... Both clubs had 8 hits each.


The Islandian Times
Friday, October 10, 2014

2014 IPA Pro Cup Series - Game 3

BB Sunbirds Trounce Kenwood 8-2, Lead Pro Cup 2-1
For game three the IPA Pro Cup Series switched to Olde Towne Grounds in Kenwood, but it didn't help the homestanding Wildcats... the Belair Beach Sunbirds continued to thrive at the plate with 12 hits and an 8-2 triumph to take a two to one edge in the series.

Belair Beach got a fine start from Wally Green, too... Green (2-3 1.91) worked 7 strong innings, fanned 10 and held Kenwood to 1 run on 6 hits... closer Groot Tenbrook finished up, but allowed a run in his 2 innings, an eighth-inning clout by LF Jimmy Brewer (.182)... loser Sol Yakis (0-1) was routed after 2 innings... Yakis was ripped for 6 runs and 7 hits... It was Yakis' first start of the year... He made 52 relief appearances in the regular season and was very effective... Skipper Aaron Hankins is still looking for a good start from someone... all his starters have been battered so far in the series.

Belair Beach's top bats today belonged to 3B Zippy Parks (.341) with 3 hits, 2 runs and 2 RBIs, RF Billy Martz (.358), who drove in 2 runs with his 4th postseason home run and LF Ron Dizon (.333) with a pair of hits and 2 runs scored... RF Dennis Riley (.333) topped the Wildcats with 3 hits.


The Islandian Times
Saturday, October 11, 2014

2014 IPA Pro Cup Series - Game 4

Dizon's HR Lifts Sunbirds To 3-1 Lead In Pro Cup
In Kenwood, Ron Dizon of the Belair Beach Sunbirds broke the hearts of the Wildcat fans with a dramatic 2-run homer in the top of the eighth to win game 4 of the IPA Pro Cup Series 3-2... the triumph put the Sunbirds in the driver's seat with a big three-games-to-one edge in the best-of-seven series... It was Dizon's 5th roundtripper in the postseason playoffs and gave him 15 RBIs... Dizon (.345) drove in all 3 runs... He grounded out in the third and plated CF Tom Bennett, who led off the inning with a double... In the sixth RF Dennis Riley (.328) homered and put Kenwood ahead 2-1... Nasty Naymick (4-1 1.74) continued his playoff brilliance... Naymick held the Wildcats to 4 hits and 2 runs in 8 innings and fanned 6... Slim Mosley picked up his first save in the postseason by striking out 2 of the 3 batters he faced in the ninth... Bennett (.329) led the Sunbirds with 3 hits... Loser Sammy Shaw (2-2 4.10) went the route, struck out 7 and walked 1 and was tagged for 11 hits, but was tough with men on base.


The Islandian Times
Sunday, October 12, 2014

2014 IPA Pro Cup Series - Game 5

Gavagan Fires 1-Hitter, Kenwood Still Alive
Trailing 3 games to 1 and with their backs to the wall, the Kenwood Wildcats rose to the occasion and staved off elimination in the IPA Pro Cup Series with a 5-2 decision over Belair Beach in game 5 at Olde Towne Grounds in Kenwood... The Wildcats backed up Connie Gavagan's sizzling 1-hitter with 3 home runs... 3B Zippy Parks (.327) got the only Sunbird hit with an RBI single in the ninth... Gavagan (3-0 3.09) weakened in the ninth and walked 4, but closer Rick Brickell saved it for him... It was Brickell's 5th save in the playoff this year... He got the final out of the game with the bases loaded... 3B Brad Walker (.324), LF Jimmy Brewer (.196) and 1B Xavier Rocha (.234) all had solo homers to pace the Wildcats... Denny Whitaker (3-1 3.33) suffered his first postseason lost this season... Whitaker surrendered 5 runs and 11 hits in 7 innings.


The Islandian Times
Monday, October 13, 2014

2014 IPA Pro Cup Series - Game 6

Pro Cup Tied 3-3, Kenwood Slams Sunbirds 13-8
The 2014 Pro Cup Series is all tied up a 3 games apiece after Kenwood demolished Belair Beach 13-8 in game 6 at Bayside Park in Belair Beach... the Wildcats bashed 21 hits, sparked by 2B Duncan Renwick (.357) with 4 hits and 2 RBIs, C Gene Verbick (.292) with 3 hits and 2 runs batted in and SS Bob Snyder (.232) with 2 hits and 2 RBIs... LF Jimmy Brewer (.218) also delivered 3 hits, including a solo homer, and scored 3 times... In defeat 1B Denny Gray (.259) had a 3-run smash and LF Ron Dizon (.328) drove in a pair of runs with his 6th playoff home run... Kenwood led 6-3 after 3 innings, increased it to 8-3 in the top of the fifth, only to have the Sunbirds surge back to knot the score at 8-8 after 6 frames... The Wildcats regained the momentum and roared back with 5 in the last three innings for the win... Sol Yakis (1-1) got the victory, in spite of allowing 2 runs in his 1+ innings... Todd Combs and Rick Brickell saved the day by blanking Belair Beach on 1 hit in the final 3 innings... Combs worked a 1-2-3 seventh and Brickell shut them out in the last two frames.


The Islandian Times
Tuesday, October 14, 2014

2014 IPA Pro Cup Series - Game 7

Wildcats Win 2014 Pro Cup In 7 Games
Down 3 games to 1, the never-say-die Kenwood Wildcats came back and won the final 3 games to win the 2014 IPA Pro Cup... The Wildcats won game 7 by the score of 3-1 behind some fancy pitching by Sammy Shaw (3-2 3.57), who stopped the Belair Beach Sunbirds on 1 run and 4 hits in 8 impressive innings... closer Rick Brickell (1-1 3.75) notched his 6th playoff save by setting the Sunbirds down in order in the ninth... This was manager Aaron Hankins and Kenwood's first ever Pro Cup.

The Wildcats had to beat Nasty Naymick to take the crown... Naymick (4-2 1.94) was tough in the postseason... Naymick allowed 3 runs on 8 hits and left in the ninth... Kenwood scored first with a run in the top of the third... 1B Xavier Rocha (.259) walked, moved to second on an error by Naymick and scored on 2B Duncan Renwick's (.367) base hit... In the bottom of the fifth Belair Beach knotted the score at 1-1... singles by 3B Zippy Parks (.283) and 1B Denny Gray (.258) placed runners on second and third... Parks scored on SS Ron Nossek's (.250) fly ball... A walk, a sacrifice bunt and a single by Shaw (.077) produced a 2-1 lead for Kenwood in the top of the seventh... Wildcat RF Dennis Riley's (.307) 4th playoff four-bagger provided an insurance run in the eighth.

At the post-game press conference winning skipper Aaron Hankins told reporters, "It's been a long time coming, but we finally won a Pro Cup for the great fans in Kenwood. Our pitching had not been very good in the first six games... we really needed a good outing today and Sammy gave it to us. He was absolutely amazing, holding the Sunbirds to just four hits and one run."


The Islandian Times
Wednesday, October 15, 2014

Kenwood's Gavagan Pro Cup MVP
In a hotly-contested poll, Connie Gavagan, Kenwood's fine pitcher, nudged out teammate Dennis Riley for the IPA Pro Cup Most Valuable Player Award. Gavagan led the Wildcats to the Pro Cup championship with a 3-0 record and a 3.09 ERA. Gavagan won several of the crucial "must win" games. Riley, the Kenwood right fielder, batted .307 and led the club with 4 homers and 14 RBIs during the postseason. 32-year-old Gavagan was the choice of 30 writers and sportscasters, while Riley received 28 votes. The most valuable player in the Pro Cup playoffs is selected each season in a poll conducted by The Islandian Times.

Belair Beach's mound standout Nasty Naymick (4-2 1.94) came in third in the balloting with 24 votes, followed by Sunbird left fielder Ron Dizon, who led the playoffs with 6 home runs and 17 RBIs. Dizon had a .324 batting average. He was named on 23 ballots. The only other player to get votes was Belair Beach's right fielder Billy Martz, who was fifth in the poll. Martz had a .341 batting average, 4 homers, 13 RBIs and scored 16 runs. Martz received 20 votes.

The Islandian Times
Monday, October 20, 2014

Szabo And Burg 2014 IPA MVPs
The Islandian Pro Alliance announced the BNN Most Valuable Player Awards for the 2014 season. Both winners have already been recognized with the Golden Arm Awards. Ilya Szabo of the the Colfax Blasters was the MVP recipient in the Ruthlandian Union and Cody Burg was honored with the Tycobbian Union MVP.

Szabo led the Blasters to the RU West title with a standout 23-8 record and topped the league with a brilliant 1.75 ERA. Szabo has been the ERA leader three times in his career. The 35-year-old right-hander also paced the league with 7 shutouts. This is Szabo's second MVP crown. He has also taken the RU Golden Arm trophy twice. Lifetime Szabo has compiled a 220-110 record with a remarkable 2.36 ERA.

Taranto's slugger Augie Marshall was Szabo's biggest challenger. Marshall batted .327 for the second place Tars in the RU North and ranked at the top of the league with 49 homers and 146 RBIs. Young Kyle Ferguson, Kilkenny's 25-year-old hurler, rated third in the BNN poll, was 24-8 with a 2.04 ERA in his second season in the IPA. Ferguson had the second-best ERA. The Cats wound up fourth in the tough RU North.

Burg has won most games in IPA history with an overall 252-151 mark in his 14 seasons. This year the 32-year old Hurricane ace registered a 25-12 record and fanned 288 batters in 310 innings and collected the Tycobbian Union MVP award for the first time. He has been named the Golden Arm winner on three occasions. Burg has been the TU strikeout king a remarkable 11 times. His 2.41 ERA was the best in the TU. It's the fifth time Burg has ranked number one in that category. Despite Burg's great year, Cape Coral finished fifth in the TU South this year.

Two hard-swinging first sackers gave Burg the most competion. Turon's Clyde Kingsford led the Typhoons to the TU South flag and was the number two votegetter. Kingsford batted .311, slammed 39 home runs and drove in 129 runs. High Mesa's Jack Elliott, the TU Golden Bat winner for the second year in a row, was third in the balloting. Elliott's Cowboys were third in the TU East race. He had another massive season with a .342 batting average (3rd), 51 homers (1st), 141 RBIs (1st) and scored 129 runs (2nd). Elliott came up 2 points short in the batting race and just barely missed out on the Triple Crown.


The Islandian Times
Tuesday, October 21, 2014

Best Skippers Honored By IPA, FM's Groveland And Midway's Chandler Winners
The top IPA managers for 2014 have been selected by BNN. This year's best are Far Mountain's Alex Groveland in the Ruthlandian Union and Midway's Cochise Chandler in the Tycobbian Union. Groveland's Redhawks captured their sixth consecutive RU North title and recorded the most wins in the IPA with a 96-58 mark. Groveland won the award for the third straight year. Chandler led his Wolves to the playoffs for the first time in history with a league-best 94-60 record. Midway rose up from 4th place in 2013. Chandler is a first-time winner.

In the Ruthlandian Union, Belair Beach's Marty Pedroza was second to Groveland in the poll. His Sunbirds won the RU South with a 95-59 record. Marston's Johnny Walters was number three. The Nine climbed from 4th to first in the RU East. The other votegetters were Boo Ladrieux of Belle Plaine in fourth place and Rocky Rapids' Ryan Noland. The Musketeers jumped from 6th to second in the RU East and the Snappers went from 5th to second in the RU West with a 91-63 mark, which was the fourth-best record after powerhouses Far Mountain, Belair Beach and Colfax.

Over in the Tycobbian Union, the runner-up to Chandler was Zim Donner of the Hartsdale Hellcats in the TU North, who went from last place to first place in just one year. Third in the polling was Kenwood's Aaron Hankins. His Wildcats moved from 3rd in the TU West to first and returned to the postseason for the first time since 2002. Turon's Whitey Richburn came in fourth. The Typhoons were again pennant winners in the TU South with a 93-61 record, second in victories to Midway's 94.