[ArquimedezPozo]

Much as the promotion of the Tampa Tarpons spurred speculation of an upset in Division 1, the arrival of the Detroit Stars - back in Division 2 after three cycles in D3 - was the biggest topic of discussion in the junior circuit. Detroit’s powerful offense was headlined by Ali Brown, arguably the best third baseman of his generation and a two-time D3 MVP. In what was widely seen as a weak D2 East, Detroit was seen as having a legitimate shot to take the Conference in their first season. Eyes were also on the Baltimore Terrapins, back in D2 for the first time since their record-shattering Cycle 7 run. They had just completed the worst stretch of their existence, with three straight last place finishes, and though they’d signed star Ft. Worth 2B Omar Juarez in the offseason the roster was still largely bare.

In the west, the promotion of Denver meant opportunity for several clubs. The Buffaloes, whose previous (and only) first place season was now 15 years in the past, has run a close second to Denver in 2036 and seemed primed for a run. The Mounties had a lot of young talent that seemed ready to make a mark: CF Sonny Scoggins, 3B Leo Rodriguez, 2B Colin Hannigan, SP Danny Tanon, and closer Matt Greene were all 27 or younger and made up an impressive youth movement. Then there were the Cats: the relegated former D1 team had bounced up and down twice over the last few cycles, and though they had lost some players (including the aforementioned Juarez) they had signed an intriguing international free agent out of
Japan. Yukinobu Hasegawa was a gifted multi-position defensive whiz whose outstanding batting eye and solid power potential caught Cats Scouting Director Roberto Roman’s eye. The Cats planned to install him at short to replace the departed Omar Arredondo.

In the East, the Terrapins went hard out of the gate, amassing an 11-6 record and the Conference lead by the end of April. The rest of the conference wasn’t far behind, though, and by mid-May the Terrapins had been joined at the top by Detroit and by the resurgent Boston Bees, and by HR leader Russ Mesaros, the DH. But behind a strong month from Ali Brown, the Stars crept into first, while the Terrapins faded back, leaving only Boston within a few games. The Stars and Bees played neck and neck ball through July, ending the month in a tie for first with Baltimore six games out, and Ottawa, New Orleans, and Montreal fighting over last place. The Bees pulled ahead in early August, but a late-month surge put Detroit in first for good. Baltimore stayed in it, but couldn’t close the gap either, and the season ended with Detroit taking the title with Baltimore and Boston both four games back, and Ottawa, Montreal, and New Orleans taking up the rear.
In the West, San Diego jumped out to a surprise lead which they retained into June, but Ft. Worth soon overcame it, with Vancouver and Houston on their heels. Vancouver was powered by Hannigan, who hit .306/.443/.600 in July as the Mounties climbed up the Conference, from six games back in fifth place on July 1 to a tie for first with the Cats on August 1. They kept pace with Ft. Worth for the rest of the month, while the Buffaloes sat just three back. For Fort Worth, their newcomer, Hasegawa, was the difference maker: while playing exceptional defense at short, the rookie hit .325 with seven homers and a .688 SLG in July, keeping the Cats in the hunt. He finished with a .351 wOBA and 129 wRC+ while his defense elevated his value: his 5.8 WAR was tops for shortstops, and he eclipsed all rookies in essentially every offensive category. By the season’s final weekend, the Mounties and Cats remained deadlocked, each at 84-68 with two games to play. But while Ft. Worth beat up on San Diego, winning their final two by a combined score of 15-3, the Mounties dropped close ones to Montreal, ending their bid. The Cats, who had finished last in D1 East the year before, were Conference winners in 2037, and would face Detroit in a battle of D2 newcomers. Neither knew they were about to be part of history.

Division 2 Championship Series

There wasn’t much drama at first. Detroit won game 1 behind a solid Chris Morris start, as 1B Luis Baleia homered, young 2B Shane McBride went 4-5 with 2 doubles and 2 RBI, and Morris - a DH on his pitching days - doubled and scored. Hasegawa and LF Tim Sicinski scored Ft. Worth’s two runs in the contest. Game 2 was much more exciting: a 12 inning game that Detroit won on a walk-off single by Baleia, scoring Ali Brown. Detroit had led 5-3 going into the ninth, but two singles and a walk loaded the bases for Sicinski. Detroit’s closer Shane Smith got the count to two and two, but the Ft. Worth LF was able to line a ball to right, scoring one run immediately. The runner on second, made the turn, and though the throw from RF Bill Schottemer was a strong one, it was up the line. The game was tied.

The bottom of the ninth passed quietly, as did the 10th and 11th, and though Ft. Worth put a runner in scoring position via a Jalen Bynum double, they couldn’t convert. Ft. Worth turned to fifth starter Antonio Duran for the bottom of the twelfth. He got McBride on a fly ball, but walked Brown; Victor Ortiz singled, putting runners on first and second for Luis Baleia. Detroit’s first baseman took a 2-1 pith through the 5-6 hole on a line, and though Sicinski gave it a solid effort, Brown had gotten a great jump and scored the walk off run with relative ease, giving Detroit a 2-0 advantage heading to Texas.

In Game 3, homers by Brown and Ortiz gave Detroit an early lead, 5-2 by the end of the sixth inning. A desperate Ft. Worth struggled against Detroit starter Jacob Bergman and the Stars bullpen in the 6th, 7th, and 8th. And while Jordan Rodriguez homered off Chris Little in the ninth to close the gap by one, the Cats let a Robby Jones double die at second. They were in a three game hole.

When Detroit scored one in the top of the first of Game 4, the feeling at Ft. Worth Municipal was heavy as fans dug in for a sweep. But the Cats showed up in the bottom of the inning, as Kovach tied it with a single and Sicinski pulled the Cats ahead with a sac fly. Ft. Worth’s starter Alvaro Cabello danced through raindrops into the fifth without allowing another run, and RP Chris Baus did the same in the 6th and the seventh. Then in the bottom of the seventh, Ft. Worth added an insurance run, as Hasegawa tripled and scored on a Robby Jones double. That was all the Cats would need as Detroit failed to capitalize on their chances, leaving 11 on base in the loss. The mood of the Ft. Worth crowd that left the park that night was one of very cautious optimism: no team in NABF history had ever come back from an 0-3 deficit to win a Championship Series, but the first step was done, and at least coming back from 1-3 wasn’t unprecedented.

In Game 5, Detroit once again scored in the first frame, on a double, sac bunt, and sac fly. And with Chris Morris and Nick Khouri on the mound, the score stayed there at 1-0 Detroit into the fifth. But Ft. Worth unleashed a stream of hits against Morries from the very first pitch of that inning, with switch hitting OF Mike Haeg smacking a double and advancing on a single by Robby Jones. A walk to Kevin Peterson brought up the light-hitting Eria Khatabi, but the CF blooped a ball past the shortstop into left, scoring Haeg and tying the game. Shaken, Morris walked Hasegawa to give the Cats the lead. Jalen Bynum worked a ten pitch AB, fouling off six straight before punching a ball that looked great off the bat. The crowd rose to its feet anticipating the grand slam, but the ball fell just ahead of the wall and into CF David Beach’s glove. It was enough to score Ft. Worth’s third run, though, and advance Khatabi to third, from where he scored on a Sicinski groundout. It was 4-1 Ft Worth at the end of the fifth, and it was 4-1 Ft. Worth at the end of the ninth. 2-3 now, but the series was headed back to Motown.

What unfolded in Detroit in Game 6 broke nearly every Championship Series offensive record there was. Detroit scored 11 runs, collecting 12 hits, two of them homers; the team as a whole struck out only twice again starter Steve Granillo and the Ft. Worth pen. But that wasn’t the part of the game that broke the records. Ft. Worth, which had scored 706 runs in the regular season, second in D2, went wild against Detroit pitching. They scored four in the first, almost entirely on singles, and when Detroit answered with a four spot of their own, Ft. Worth gave them another three in the top of the second. Then they dropped a five run third, on a Sicinski grand slam; the Bynum solo shot that followed was just the cherry on top. They scored another three in the fourth, and one in the fifth. They took the sixth inning off, but came back with two in the seventh, one in the eighth, and two in the ninth. Only Elia Khatabia didn’t get a hit, but the eight other starters collected 19 total, the most for any team in NABF history in a single Championship game. That all amounted to 21 runs, a single team CS record, and 32 total runs, a record for a full game. But amidst all those fireworks, one fact lifted above the others: Ft. Worth was on the verge of the most epic comeback in NABF history.

There was little drama in it, when it happened in Game 7. Kovach launched a three run homer in the first, and Detroit was beaten, though they kept on playing. The Stars crawled back to make it 4-2 after 6, but a Robby Jones double (his fifth of the series) scored two, and then he himself scored to make it 7-2. Duran, who had been the losing pitcher in Game 2, came out of the pen again for a perfect ninth inning, and Detroit, stunned, came off the field to dead silence from their hometown as the Cats celebrated. They had done the impossible, and they were champions once again.