[pauwoo]

Detroit Motors (93-69, .574, 1st AL East) @ Los Angeles Leopards (109-53, .673, 1st NL West)
We’ve arrived at the playground, a Crown Royal bag filled with our best marbles in our front pocket, a circle has been drawn in the sand… we’re ready, we were built for this, confident that putting all our best catseye’s, onionskins, and hoggers up for grabs will pay the ultimate dividend, that our most trusty shooter is ready to be flicked into battle. We couldn’t ask for a more deserving or formidable foe to face off against as we look to permanently etch our names into the annuals of time. Detroit is formidable – led by Tony Voorhis (.282/32/84) and Paulo Legna (.293/16/87) on offense and by Peter Garcia (10-8, 3.14) & A.J. Quimby (14-11, 3.49) from the hill – the Motors played us tough this season, finishing 3-3 against us H2H, and look to win their second championship in 36 tries, with that last one coming 46 long years ago.

1 of 7: Ram Chen (1-0, 1.00) @ Peter Garcia (2-1, 2.62)
Loss, 0-1. Peter Garcia pitched like the best hurler in all of professional baseball - 7-innings, 2-hits, nothing earned, and 7 K’s for the Detroit Superstar – and Paulo Legna hit the game-winning, solo TANK during the bottom of the 8th to give Detroit a 1-0 lead in this best of 7 series. Ram Chen went 3.2 as our Skipper, Michael Scott, elected to go to the pen early, which seemed like the move until Major Hansen gave it all away, bumming out our entire team, the 48K in attendance, and the millions watching around the world.

2 of 7: Merl Crawford (0-1, 2.70) @ Dontrell Wilburn (1-1, 3.18)
Win, 6-2. We’d pull even with Detroit as Ethan and Otto each brought in two runs during the 3rd and 4th innings, respectively, providing all the cushion we’d need to get the nod in this one. Dom and Walt would each contribute an RBI, Otto swiped a bag, and every time Detroit tried to rally our defense was there with a double play – we’d turn three of those here. Merl picked up the win, is now 1-1 in the playoffs after allowing just two runs in 6-innings of work. We’ll take what we can get here, earning the split in Detroit, and head back to Los Angeles for the next three, looking to win every single one of them… and, yes, I have it set such that the AS game winner gets home field in the World Series, it’s stupid, and I need to change it.

3 of 7: Matt Martin (1-0, 1.89) @ Jan Hernandez (0-0, 4.32)
Win, 2-0. It’d be our turn to shut out Detroit after Peter Garcia and crew hung a zero around our necks in game one as Jan’s 6-inning, 3-hit shutout set a tone that Major Hansen, Sepulveda, and Haag, earning his 4th save of the postseason in this one, would follow explicitly, hanging on the lead that Otto got for us off a SOLO HOMER during the 3rd inning. A solid win that featured lights out pitching, a workmanlike offensive effort, and the superb infield defense we’ve had on display throughout the 2080 campaign.

4 of 7: A.J. Quimby (1-0, 3.38) @ Stephen Estevez (2-0, 1.12)
Win, 2-1. Dominic Cooke went 2-for-3 with the game-winning RBI, off a single, and called another stellar game behind the plate, leading our staff, once again, to a phenomenal outing as 5 pitchers took the mound, only allowing a single run to plate between them. Oh Hong was responsible for our other run, off a double (our masher has only hit 1 TANK this entire postseason), Mullens swiped a bag to keep the Detroit D honest, we fielded a crispy, Rodriguez-Hutchinson-Ono double play, and Don Haag, who may well be the MVP of these playoffs, picked up his 5th save and is now 3-0 with a 0.00 ERA, 5 Saves, 19 Ks, and only 3 free passes in 13 innings of work. I mean, there is a lot of right place, right time at play here too… but, sheesh the man just eats pressure.

5 of 7: Peter Garcia (2-1, 2.03) @ Dontrell McNeil (0-0, 0.00)
Win, 2-1. OH HONG and OTTO scored the runs, Hendo and Hutch drove them in, and Dontrell and Don Haag kept the Detroit Motors off balance as our Leopards captured their 3rd WORLD SERIES TITLE in team history with a balanced, even workmanlike, effort at home, much to the jubilation of everyone associated with the club, our fans, and anyone else who found themselves on the bandwagon this season. What. A. Year. This was definitely the best club I’ve constructed in this save, maybe in any save… there were times that they performed so well, that it felt unfair, like all the money I have at my disposal playing as one of the larger market clubs gave me such an edge, such a marked advantage, that a championship was just a forgone conclusion. And, while I know that OOTP giveth and taketh away in equal measure, that I should be happy with the good fortune, the luck of it all, it may be time to move elsewhere, to join a fledgling outfit as their new GM and try to repeat this L.A. magic with a much thinner bankroll, without superstars like Otto Isaac, Oh Hong, and Ethan Mullens… nah, it's too much fun being one of the biggest bullies on the block to stop now!

What a season! So much fun playing as this version of my club, the constant winning, OH HONG’s run at Tom Franzone for the HR title, my newest editions paying real dividends in the quality of my club, and another championship under my belt.

Thanks for reading through this, I do appreciate it.