NABL a History - Page 10

JayW UK · 10-31-2025, 04:20 AM

2037 Season Notes

Pre-season – San Diego’s young outfielder Greg Jackson (the #1 overall draft pick from 2036) was seriously injured in a car crash, leaving him in a coma fighting for his life, tragically he was only driving to the Clubs spring training camp after being given a late invite due to injuries to several other players.
April 4th – in his first start of the season Miami’s Hughton Hall hurled the season’s first NO-HITTER as the Everglades held off Cleveland 3-0.
April 6th – Austin’s veteran closer Luis Torres collected his 400th career save.
April 7th – Houston’s 24-year-old pitcher Jose Vazquez suffered a fractured elbow against Kansas City and was lost for the year, a tough pill to swallow for the young man who had only just been promoted to the rotation.
April 8th – in a tragic turn of events, after hanging on for almost two weeks San Diego’s Greg Jackson lost his battle for life, leaving everyone connected to the franchise stunned and the wider baseball community mourning the sad loss of such a young talent.
April 10th – Minneapolis starter Marc Fort joined the 3000K club, striking out OKC’s Xavier Cisneros to reach the milestone.
April 19th – Tampa Bay star Bryant Manton played a big part in the Hurricanes 12-7 victory over Philadelphia, hitting for the CYCLE and collecting 7-RBI’s
May 20th – Sanfrancisco’s star 3B Matt Romero ruptured his Achilles tendon ending his season after just 16 games.
May 27th – 37-year-old Indianapolis reliever Greg Gray, became only the second player to reach 500 career saves, joining Min-Jae Choi in the exclusive club.
May 28th – St. Louis’ off-season trade acquisition, closer Uram Park suffered torn triceps ruling him out until the end of September at the earliest.
June 3rd – Seattle 3B David Henry hit for the CYCLE and drove in four runs, but it was all for nothing as the Pioneers dropped a heartbreaker to Houston.
June 4th – Tampa Bay 1B Jesus Agguire (3-for-3, 2 HR, 8-RBI) played his part in helping the Hurricanes hammer Chicago to the tune of 18-2.
June 8th – veteran second baseman Jack Underwood played an instrumental role in Denver’s come-from-behind win against Kansas City going 5-for-5 with 5-RBI’s, to make his day all-the-more sweeter, his walk-off 2-RBI double was hit number 2500 of his illustrious career.
June 14th – Minneapolis catcher Tom Walsh almost single handedly carried the Bears to victory over Houston, he collected 6 RBI’s on 4 hits, two of which were homeruns, including the game winning 3-run walk-off blast in the bottom of the 11th.
June 15th – St. Louis pitcher Les Scott’s highly rated stuff was on full display against New Orleans as he struck out 15 Blues in an 8-4 Reds victory.
June 20th – Dixon Bodean drilled his 700th career homerun in Baltimore’s 5-3 victory over Washington.
June 21st - Washington’s Lucio Martinez scored his 1000th career run as the Generals again fell to Baltimore.
June 29th – Las Vegas 3B Joseph Floores hit for the CYCLE including a go-ahead two-run homer in the ninth, as the Gamblers scraped home 6-4 against Phoenix.
July 1st – St. Louis starter Les Scott flat out dominated Detroit, striking out 16 in eight innings of work as the Reds rolled to a 10-3 victory.
July 2nd – Charlotte chose to cash in on veteran SS Jamie Henson, (who’s contract was up at season’s end) and bolster their infield in the process by trading Henson to Sanfrancisco for 1B Andres Romero.
July 8th – Miami’s RF Peter Thomas came up big for the Everglades (4-for-4, 3 HR, 5 RBI’s) as they held off in-state rivals Tampa Bay 8-7.
July 10th – Denver’s pitching rotation suffered a blow when Dave Cramer suffered a torn hamstring ruling him out until October.
July 11th –Seattle 3B Julio Ramirez launched the 300th homerun of his career in the Pioneers 4-2 win over Chicago.
July 14th – 35-year-old Miami 1B Broderick Hill rolled back the years when he drilled a walk-off RBI double to lift the Everglades to a 6-5 victory over San Jose.
July 15th – Broderick Hill was at it again the following day, this time going one better when he smashed a walk-off 2-run homer to once again help Miami defeat San Jose.
July 22nd – LA’s Ike Singleton took 93 pitches to see off Las Vegas, surrendering 3 walks on the way to NO-HITTING the Gamblers on a night when the Lynx offense was held to just three hits, one of them being a homerun which proved to be just enough to carry LA to the win.
August 6th – in the game between Kansas City and San Jose all the action took place in a crazy ninth inning. With the game tied 0-0 after eight frames the visiting Tornadoes took a two-run lead in the top of the ninth, only for the hometown Spartans to rally and tie the game before going on to win on a walk-off Grand-Slam blasted by RF Doug Matthews.
August 7th – Philadelphia star Matt Henderson lifted the Independence to victory over division Rivals New York by hitting the 400th homerun of his illustrious career.
August 13th – San Diego’s pitchers couldn’t control Minneapolis CF Fernando Hernandez (3-for-5, 2 HR, 8-RBI’s) as he accounted for all but one of the Bears runs in their 9-2 victory.
August 16th – Atlanta’s Alex Blanca played a pivotal role in the Flames 14-7 victory over Minneapolis, going 3-for-4, with 2 HR (one Grand-Slam) and collecting 8-RBI’s.
August 22nd – St. Louis snuck home 8-7 against Cleveland almost blowing an 8-1 ninth inning lead in the process, the Reds were forced to use five pitchers to escape the inning, the fifth of which was Kikaku Aoki who finally ended the game and collected the 300th save of his career in doing so.
August 25th – Philadelphia ace Shane Olson shut the Austin offense down, surrendering just a single hit and allowing just one walk while striking out 15 through eight dominant frames, but the Kings had the last word taking the game to extras and winning in the 12th.
August 26th – Denver star 2B Jack Underwood was placed on the DL ending his season, he was shut down on doctor’s orders after struggling for most of the year with Planter Fasciitis.
September 2nd – Omaha SS Angel Lopez hit for the CYCLE, collecting 2 RBI’s along the way, his efforts were not enough for the Braves to beat Houston though as they fell 5-3.
September 6th – RF Gustavo Reyes drilled a go-ahead solo homerun to complete the CYCLE as Chicago downed Cleveland 5-4.
September 17th – LA second baseman Carl Scott was instrumental in leading the Lynx to a 9-6 victory over San Jose, collecting six hits including four for extra bases and driving in four of LA’s nine runs. While in Atlanta, the Flames had trouble all day putting the ball in play against St. Louis pitcher Les Scott, he collected 15 strikeouts through seven innings of work in an 8-2 Reds victory, it was the third time on the season Scott had struck out at least 15 batters.
September 18th – San Jose LF Joe Clark’s season ended when he tore his hamstring in his club’s loss to Seattle. Also, on the same day Boston received some unwelcome injury news with pitcher Brandon Stanton being ruled out for the season.
September 21st – New York RF Roy Higgins played a huge part in the Senators victory over rivals Boston, Higgins’ big day included hitting a pair of homeruns, one of which was a Grand-Slam, and driving in 8!! The Senators 13-9 victory cut Boston’s lead at the top of the Atlantic division to just 2 games with nine games left to play.
September 23rd – Boston lost another pitcher to injury, this time Kane Conacher who was forced to the DL with elbow inflammation ending his season.
September 25th – Denver’s postseason plans were thrown into disarray with the news that two players were heading to the DL effectively ending their seasons, 2B Eric Graves (Jack Underwood’s replacement) was out with a sprained ankle and CF Fernando Diaz suffered broken ribs.
September 26th – Charlotte’s Greg Marshall had a field day against New Orleans striking out 16 as the Express routed the Blues 17-2.
September 27th – even though the Generals fell to another frustrating loss, Washington LF Lucio Martinez had reason to celebrate, he collected three hits the second of which was the 2000th of his career.
September 28th – Charlotte 2B Anibal Trueba scored the 1000th run of his career when Daron Murphy drove him home to give the Express a hard fought 4-3 victory over Miami.
September 29th – another of San Jose’s starting outfielders went to the DL with a season ending injury, this time RF Doug Matthews was the unlucky man, suffering a strained Oblique muscle.
September 30th – on the last day of the season Dallas LF Alfonso Sosa collected his 1000th career RBI as the Mustangs ended their disappointing season on a high, thumping Austin 15-4.
October 3rd – after rushing himself back from injury for the postseason, St. Louis closer Uram Park’s first career playoff appearance lasted only 4 pitches before he exited with a shoulder injury.

JayW UK · 11-02-2025, 05:14 AM

2037 Playoffs

Divisional Round

In the east World Champions Boston would begin their title defence with a mouth-watering matchup with high powered Indianapolis, while playoff new boys St. Louis would face fellow 2027 expansion team Charlotte. Over in the west, favourites for the WL pennant Las Vegas would get another crack at San Jose, the team that had eliminated the Gamblers in both 2033 and ’36, while Denver, back in the playoffs again, would face wildcard team Houston and have the chance to avenge their 2025 playoff exit at their hands.

Defending NABL champions Boston opened their much-anticipated series with Indianapolis on the road, aiming to avoid being the latest champions knocked out of the playoffs at the first hurdle (the previous four champions had all fallen this way). Game one didn’t go to plan as starter Greg Bailey ran into trouble early, surrendering a three-run homerun to catcher Guillermo Nodal in the second before conceding two more runs in the fourth, his night was done after just five innings with the Pilgrims in a 5-0 hole. The Racers kept up the pressure, scoring four more runs against the overwhelmed Boston bullpen as Indianapolis took game one in dominant fashion. A much-improved performance from Boston pitchers Gerald Helton, Mark Lyons and Ralf Conrad in game 2 restricted the Racers to just two runs on seven hits, but the Pilgrims hitters could get nothing going against Indianapolis pitchers Dave Lockhart and Harvey Widdowes who combined for a three-hit shutout leaving defending champs Boston on the verge of elimination. Indianapolis jumped on Boston starter Brett Knight in game three, scoring three time over the opening two frames, Knight managed to put the brakes on the Racers after their early success and with Ralf Conrad keeping Indianapolis in check once he took the mound there was still a chance for Boston to save their season, and save it they did with an eighth inning rally capped by a Lucio Rodriguez homerun. The momentum had clearly swung in Boston’s favour as the Pilgrims shot into an early lead in game four up 6-0 after two innings highlighted by Lucio Rodriguez’s first inning Grand-Slam, Boston uncharacteristically took their foot off the gas allowing Indianapolis to make a comeback narrowing the gap to 6-4 entering the ninth inning, Mike Mayfield, worked around a pair of walks to close out the game and send the series back to Indianapolis for a winner-takes-all game five. In a tight pitching duel it was Boston’s Gerald Helton that blinked first when he surrendered a go ahead solo homer to LF Marc Smith in the fifth, Boston’s veteran RF Jared Guest tied the scores with a homerun of his own in the seventh, before the hometown Racers got themselves back on top with Craig McKillop’s RBI single in the eighth off reliever Mike Mayfield. Closer Harvey Widdowes kept his cool in the ninth to retire the Pilgrims in order and secure the narrow 2-1 victory. Boston failed in their aim of avoiding elimination at the first hurdle joining Charlotte, San Jose, Tampa Bay and Dallas in making it now five years in a row the defending champions had been dumped out in the divisional round.

The other eastern league divisional series was a battle of the expansion teams with Charlotte hosting St. Louis for the Reds first ever playoff game. The Express cruised to victory in game one on the back of Greg Marshall who pitched a strong seven innings (7IP, 4H, 1ER, 9K) and homeruns from 1B Andres Romero and 3B Alfonso Alvarez, the following night it was the turn of the visitors with a pair of homers from catcher Gregg Connolly and a two-run blast from LF Jesus Alarcon propelling St. Louis to a 5-2 win. With the series tied at one apiece, the city of St. Louis hosted its first ever playoff game, unfortunately for the home side things began to go awry early, a first inning error from 1B Glenn Hansen extended the frame long enough for LF Daron Murphy to blast the Express ahead with a three-run homer. After St. Louis starter Darrell Haney left the game in the fourth with two men aboard, reliever Pedro Ruiz proceeded to make things worse by walking 2B Anibal Trueba to load the bases before surrendering a Grand-Slam to 1B Andres Romero pushing Charlotte’s lead to a healthy 7-0. Although the Reds bullpen managed to restrict the Express to one run the rest of the way their offense was held at bay by the pitching of Jim Jacques and Steve Walls as Charlotte romped home 8-0. Game four was a pitching duel between Les Scott (STL) and Greg Marshall (CHA) with both men exchanging zeros for the first five innings, a sixth inning RBI single from 1B Glenn Hansen broke the tie and gave St, Louis the lead, the Reds padded that lead by adding a further run in the seventh before the visitors got on the board in the eighth on a LF Michael Miller RBI single. St. Louis called on veteran closer Kikaku Aoki for the ninth and he delivered pitching a clean inning to force a game five. The decider was a closely fought contest until the seventh inning, when Charlotte’s bats woke up battering the St. Louis relievers for six runs, including a 3B Alfonso Alvarez Grand-Slam off 21-year-old Nathan Cortez (a welcome to the playoffs moment for the youngster) as the hometeam Express eased into the ELCS with a 7-1 victory.

Las Vegas and San Jose were meeting for the third time in five years with the Spartans holding a 2-0 advantage in series wins. Las Vegas sent veteran Angel Castro to the mound for game one while the Spartans countered with Pedro Rosario, both men played well, each pitching seven innings of two run ball before exiting, the Gamblers relief corps coughed up a run in the eighth before Spartans closer Dave Day took the mound for the ninth looking to close out the victory. Things started well when he struck out danger man Joseph Floores but when LF Pedro Gomez (only playing due to injuries to both Joe Clark and Doug Matthews) misplayed a seemingly easy flyball, turning what should have been an out into a two-base error, things began to go wrong. A wild pitch advanced the runner to third before a Bryan Dale sacrifice fly tied the scores, a mound visit from the pitching coach and catcher Daniel Walker failed to help as next man up Vaughan Synder launched the first ball he saw into the stands to give the Gamblers a dramatic walk-off win. The Gamblers were at it again the following night, with the scores tied at four heading into the bottom of the ninth, back-to-back doubles from LF Sloan Dickey and Porter Raines gave Las Vegas another dramatic walk-off win and a 2-0 series lead to take with them to California. A wobbly start by Franklin Smith (4.0 IP, 5H, 3ER, 4BB, 1K) put Las Vegas behind early but this time there was no coming back as Ivan Lopez combined with relievers Javier Valencia and Rick Sauer to restrict the Gamblers to just a single run, and see the Spartans home safely keeping the series alive. Game four was over as a contest by the end of the first inning, the Las Vegas lineup taking a liking to San Jose starter Pedro Rosario (0.1 IP, 6H, 6ER) and reliever Gil Nash (0.2 IP, 2ER, all 3 inherited runners scoring) as they built an 8-0 lead, Las Vegas starter Angel Castro on the other hand hardly had to work up a sweat as the Gamblers cruised to a 9-2 victory, dumping defending WL champions San Jose out of the playoffs in the process.

In the twelve years since Houston had swept Denver out of the playoffs, neither team had any postseason pedigree to boast of, Denver had qualified once losing 3-1 to Las Vegas in 2031, while Houston had made the postseason twice during that time, going down 3-1 to San Jose the previous season and being swept from the playoffs by Seattle in 2027. Denver entered this series as the favourites boasting the top scoring offense in the WL and solid pitching while Houston had the #3 offense and just a middle of the road pitching staff, so a high scoring matchup was expected. As anticipated both offenses showed up early in game one, SS Hector Soto hitting a 2-run homer to give Houston the lead while LF Ramon Vega slammed a 2-run shot of his own to tie the game. Both starters struggled with finding the strike zone and with their pitch counts mounting fast, the bullpens were called upon in the sixth, Houston found the change to their liking while Denver’s offense was
stymied by a combination of David Martinez, Gabriel Acevedo and Alex Allenby, Houston running out 8-4 winners to stun the home crowd. Neither starter brought their A-game the following night, and when both managers turned the game over to the bullpens in the sixth inning, amazingly the game was still tied at 1-1. That didn’t last long as Denver’s potent offense finally found its groove, plating five un-answered runs including homers from 1B Daniel Kirk and C Mack Peralta, as the Wildcats cruised home 6-1. Houston opened their two-game homestand by getting to Denver starter Caden Duncan early scoring four times over the opening two frames, Duncan however settled down to go the distance without conceding any further runs. Denver managed to chip away at the lead, eventually cutting it to one, but the Houston bullpen held firm with closer Pablo Hernandez striking out Ramon Vega with two runners aboard to end the game. The following night Houston once again jumped on the Wildcats starter, this time the unlucky victim was Valentin Morales who had surrendered homeruns to SS Hector Soto and LF Robert Harris before he had retired a single batter. Morales’ night ended after just four innings with Denver already behind 6-0 and try as they might the Wildcats couldn’t find a way back into the game, with their best chance of mounting a rally coming against reliever Sam Johnson Jr in the eighth, when they loaded the bases with no-one out only for Danny Hewes to strikeout and 3B Levi Bute to hit into an inning ending double play. Denver did finally manage to get on the board in the ninth when CF Jake Griffin blasted a solo homerun but it was nothing more than a consolation as Houston waltzed home 6-1 to take the series and book their place in the WLCS for the third time in their history.

JayW UK · 11-02-2025, 05:14 AM

2037 Playoffs

Divisional Round

In the east World Champions Boston would begin their title defence with a mouth-watering matchup with high powered Indianapolis, while playoff new boys St. Louis would face fellow 2027 expansion team Charlotte. Over in the west, favourites for the WL pennant Las Vegas would get another crack at San Jose, the team that had eliminated the Gamblers in both 2033 and ’36, while Denver, back in the playoffs again, would face wildcard team Houston and have the chance to avenge their 2025 playoff exit at their hands.

Defending NABL champions Boston opened their much-anticipated series with Indianapolis on the road, aiming to avoid being the latest champions knocked out of the playoffs at the first hurdle (the previous four champions had all fallen this way). Game one didn’t go to plan as starter Greg Bailey ran into trouble early, surrendering a three-run homerun to catcher Guillermo Nodal in the second before conceding two more runs in the fourth, his night was done after just five innings with the Pilgrims in a 5-0 hole. The Racers kept up the pressure, scoring four more runs against the overwhelmed Boston bullpen as Indianapolis took game one in dominant fashion. A much-improved performance from Boston pitchers Gerald Helton, Mark Lyons and Ralf Conrad in game 2 restricted the Racers to just two runs on seven hits, but the Pilgrims hitters could get nothing going against Indianapolis pitchers Dave Lockhart and Harvey Widdowes who combined for a three-hit shutout leaving defending champs Boston on the verge of elimination. Indianapolis jumped on Boston starter Brett Knight in game three, scoring three time over the opening two frames, Knight managed to put the brakes on the Racers after their early success and with Ralf Conrad keeping Indianapolis in check once he took the mound there was still a chance for Boston to save their season, and save it they did with an eighth inning rally capped by a Lucio Rodriguez homerun. The momentum had clearly swung in Boston’s favour as the Pilgrims shot into an early lead in game four up 6-0 after two innings highlighted by Lucio Rodriguez’s first inning Grand-Slam, Boston uncharacteristically took their foot off the gas allowing Indianapolis to make a comeback narrowing the gap to 6-4 entering the ninth inning, Mike Mayfield, worked around a pair of walks to close out the game and send the series back to Indianapolis for a winner-takes-all game five. In a tight pitching duel it was Boston’s Gerald Helton that blinked first when he surrendered a go ahead solo homer to LF Marc Smith in the fifth, Boston’s veteran RF Jared Guest tied the scores with a homerun of his own in the seventh, before the hometown Racers got themselves back on top with Craig McKillop’s RBI single in the eighth off reliever Mike Mayfield. Closer Harvey Widdowes kept his cool in the ninth to retire the Pilgrims in order and secure the narrow 2-1 victory. Boston failed in their aim of avoiding elimination at the first hurdle joining Charlotte, San Jose, Tampa Bay and Dallas in making it now five years in a row the defending champions had been dumped out in the divisional round.

The other eastern league divisional series was a battle of the expansion teams with Charlotte hosting St. Louis for the Reds first ever playoff game. The Express cruised to victory in game one on the back of Greg Marshall who pitched a strong seven innings (7IP, 4H, 1ER, 9K) and homeruns from 1B Andres Romero and 3B Alfonso Alvarez, the following night it was the turn of the visitors with a pair of homers from catcher Gregg Connolly and a two-run blast from LF Jesus Alarcon propelling St. Louis to a 5-2 win. With the series tied at one apiece, the city of St. Louis hosted its first ever playoff game, unfortunately for the home side things began to go awry early, a first inning error from 1B Glenn Hansen extended the frame long enough for LF Daron Murphy to blast the Express ahead with a three-run homer. After St. Louis starter Darrell Haney left the game in the fourth with two men aboard, reliever Pedro Ruiz proceeded to make things worse by walking 2B Anibal Trueba to load the bases before surrendering a Grand-Slam to 1B Andres Romero pushing Charlotte’s lead to a healthy 7-0. Although the Reds bullpen managed to restrict the Express to one run the rest of the way their offense was held at bay by the pitching of Jim Jacques and Steve Walls as Charlotte romped home 8-0. Game four was a pitching duel between Les Scott (STL) and Greg Marshall (CHA) with both men exchanging zeros for the first five innings, a sixth inning RBI single from 1B Glenn Hansen broke the tie and gave St, Louis the lead, the Reds padded that lead by adding a further run in the seventh before the visitors got on the board in the eighth on a LF Michael Miller RBI single. St. Louis called on veteran closer Kikaku Aoki for the ninth and he delivered pitching a clean inning to force a game five. The decider was a closely fought contest until the seventh inning, when Charlotte’s bats woke up battering the St. Louis relievers for six runs, including a 3B Alfonso Alvarez Grand-Slam off 21-year-old Nathan Cortez (a welcome to the playoffs moment for the youngster) as the hometeam Express eased into the ELCS with a 7-1 victory.

Las Vegas and San Jose were meeting for the third time in five years with the Spartans holding a 2-0 advantage in series wins. Las Vegas sent veteran Angel Castro to the mound for game one while the Spartans countered with Pedro Rosario, both men played well, each pitching seven innings of two run ball before exiting, the Gamblers relief corps coughed up a run in the eighth before Spartans closer Dave Day took the mound for the ninth looking to close out the victory. Things started well when he struck out danger man Joseph Floores but when LF Pedro Gomez (only playing due to injuries to both Joe Clark and Doug Matthews) misplayed a seemingly easy flyball, turning what should have been an out into a two-base error, things began to go wrong. A wild pitch advanced the runner to third before a Bryan Dale sacrifice fly tied the scores, a mound visit from the pitching coach and catcher Daniel Walker failed to help as next man up Vaughan Synder launched the first ball he saw into the stands to give the Gamblers a dramatic walk-off win. The Gamblers were at it again the following night, with the scores tied at four heading into the bottom of the ninth, back-to-back doubles from LF Sloan Dickey and Porter Raines gave Las Vegas another dramatic walk-off win and a 2-0 series lead to take with them to California. A wobbly start by Franklin Smith (4.0 IP, 5H, 3ER, 4BB, 1K) put Las Vegas behind early but this time there was no coming back as Ivan Lopez combined with relievers Javier Valencia and Rick Sauer to restrict the Gamblers to just a single run, and see the Spartans home safely keeping the series alive. Game four was over as a contest by the end of the first inning, the Las Vegas lineup taking a liking to San Jose starter Pedro Rosario (0.1 IP, 6H, 6ER) and reliever Gil Nash (0.2 IP, 2ER, all 3 inherited runners scoring) as they built an 8-0 lead, Las Vegas starter Angel Castro on the other hand hardly had to work up a sweat as the Gamblers cruised to a 9-2 victory, dumping defending WL champions San Jose out of the playoffs in the process.

In the twelve years since Houston had swept Denver out of the playoffs, neither team had any postseason pedigree to boast of, Denver had qualified once losing 3-1 to Las Vegas in 2031, while Houston had made the postseason twice during that time, going down 3-1 to San Jose the previous season and being swept from the playoffs by Seattle in 2027. Denver entered this series as the favourites boasting the top scoring offense in the WL and solid pitching while Houston had the #3 offense and just a middle of the road pitching staff, so a high scoring matchup was expected. As anticipated both offenses showed up early in game one, SS Hector Soto hitting a 2-run homer to give Houston the lead while LF Ramon Vega slammed a 2-run shot of his own to tie the game. Both starters struggled with finding the strike zone and with their pitch counts mounting fast, the bullpens were called upon in the sixth, Houston found the change to their liking while Denver’s offense was
stymied by a combination of David Martinez, Gabriel Acevedo and Alex Allenby, Houston running out 8-4 winners to stun the home crowd. Neither starter brought their A-game the following night, and when both managers turned the game over to the bullpens in the sixth inning, amazingly the game was still tied at 1-1. That didn’t last long as Denver’s potent offense finally found its groove, plating five un-answered runs including homers from 1B Daniel Kirk and C Mack Peralta, as the Wildcats cruised home 6-1. Houston opened their two-game homestand by getting to Denver starter Caden Duncan early scoring four times over the opening two frames, Duncan however settled down to go the distance without conceding any further runs. Denver managed to chip away at the lead, eventually cutting it to one, but the Houston bullpen held firm with closer Pablo Hernandez striking out Ramon Vega with two runners aboard to end the game. The following night Houston once again jumped on the Wildcats starter, this time the unlucky victim was Valentin Morales who had surrendered homeruns to SS Hector Soto and LF Robert Harris before he had retired a single batter. Morales’ night ended after just four innings with Denver already behind 6-0 and try as they might the Wildcats couldn’t find a way back into the game, with their best chance of mounting a rally coming against reliever Sam Johnson Jr in the eighth, when they loaded the bases with no-one out only for Danny Hewes to strikeout and 3B Levi Bute to hit into an inning ending double play. Denver did finally manage to get on the board in the ninth when CF Jake Griffin blasted a solo homerun but it was nothing more than a consolation as Houston waltzed home 6-1 to take the series and book their place in the WLCS for the third time in their history.

JayW UK · 11-02-2025, 05:21 AM

2037 Playoffs

Championship Round

The eastern league Pennant Series saw Indianapolis making their ninth ELCS appearance and looking to reach a record sixth World Series, face off against Charlotte who were aiming to make the Fall Classic for the second time in three years. Indianapolis with the homefield advantage were seen as favourites but the early going in game one went the way of the visitors, as Charlotte paced by Daron Murphy (1HR, 4 RBI) and Brandon Townsend (4 runs scored) built a 7-0 lead, once their offense woke up Indianapolis stormed back into the game, cutting the lead to two but Charlotte’s Jorge Flores and Rich Sutton held firm, the latter striking out Ivan Santana with two men aboard to secure the win and stun the favoured Racers. Game two started in much the same way for Charlotte as a first inning homer from 3B Alfonso Alvarez gave them an early 3-0 lead, this time Indianapolis began their comeback much earlier with Jose Cintron cutting the lead to one with a 2-run homer in the third and Marc Smith clubbing a solo effort in the sixth to tie the game. With pitcher Ken Kramer shutting Charlotte down after their early outburst Indianapolis completed the comeback when veteran Jose Cintron clubbed a solo homerun in the bottom of the eighth and closer Harvey Widdowes slammed the door in the ninth, giving the Racers a hard-fought win and sending the series on to North Carolina all square. Homefield advantage did not help Charlotte in game three as the Express made five errors leading to four unearned runs on the way to dropping the game 8-3 to the Racers, but it wasn’t all good news for Indianapolis as they lost star outfielder Marc Smith to injury, a ruptured Achilles ending his season. A big game from 21-year-old CF Luis Garza (2 doubles, 4RBI) wasn’t enough to lift Charlotte to victory the following night as the Racers offense erupted for 11 runs, eight of them against an overworked bullpen, leaving Indianapolis on the verge of their record sixth appearance in the World Series. Both starters, Ramon Schoof (IND) and Jim Jacques (CHA) were excellent in game five, each surrendering just a single run through the first six frames, the seventh though proved to be an inning to far for Jacques as he surrendered the go ahead run and left two men on base for the bullpen to clean up. The mess was to be too much for Charlotte’s beleaguered relief corps as Indianapolis plated four more runs to cruise to a comfortable 6-2 win and book their place in the World Series.

In the first ever postseason meeting between the teams the WLCS saw Las Vegas, with their strong pitching and patient batters (owners of an NABL record low 872 strikeouts during the regular season) take on division rivals and wildcard entry Houston with the WL #3 scoring offense. Las Vegas starter Holden Willis was not at his best in game one (5.1 IP, 11H, 5ER, 3BB, 5K) but he didn’t need to be as, led by 1B Ed Matthews and his record setting day (4-5, 2 HR, one a Grand-Slam and 7 RBI’s), the Gamblers offense pummeled Houston, waltzing to an all too easy 13-5 win. The following evening saw a much better performance from Houston but they were still behind 4-3 heading into the ninth inning where an uncharacteristically sloppy outing from Gamblers closer Philip Redmond and some clutch hitting from Hector Soto and Bryant Deshields turned the game on its head and saw Houston steal the game 5-4. Back in Houston for game three and Las Vegas struggled to get going from the off falling into a 6-1 hole before rallying late against the Stars bullpen, the Gamblers loaded the bases in the top of the ninth and appeared to be heading for an improbable comeback when Joseph Floores launched what looked to be a homerun, only for RF Wolfgang Worns to rob him of a Grand-Slam with one of his trademark defensive plays. Las Vegas jumped all over Houston starter Clint Martin early in game four, plating six runs (including a Grand-Slam from Vaughan Snyder) by the end of the fourth inning, Houston chipped away at the lead but still trailed by two entering the ninth. Philip Redmond got the call and once again struggled, surrendering a solo homerun to Michael Hoover and walking two of the next three batters he faced, star shortstop Hector Soto came through with another clutch hit for Houston with a crisply hit 2-RBI walk-off single to snatch victory and leave Houston one win away from the World Series. With their backs against the wall Las Vegas turned to Holden Willis to save their season and although Willis produced a solid pitching display (6 IP, 6H, 2ER, 6K) he received no run support as Houston pitcher Wes Pierson shut down the Gamblers offense, both teams traded runs once the bullpens got involved but the Gamblers could not close the gap and slipped quietly out of the playoffs, losing in the WLCS for the second consecutive year.

JayW UK · 11-02-2025, 05:22 AM

2037 Playoffs

World Series

Representing the EL in the World Series was Indianapolis who were making their sixth appearance in the fall classic and aiming for their fourth title while the WL champions Houston had been to the World Series only once before, when they defeated Philadelphia was way back in the NABL’s inaugural season. Both teams featured offenses that could put runs on the board in bunches but it was the pitching of Indianapolis that was expected to give them the edge.
It was the pitching of Indianapolis, as expected, that dominated in game 1, with Ken Kramer going the distance in the Racers 5-2 series opening victory, the following day Dave Lockhart pitched well for Indianapolis (6.2 IP, 5H, 2ER, 6K) but the Racers offense couldn’t solve Houston starter Clint Martin until it was too late (only tagging him for a solo homerun in the eighth) as the Stars tied the series with a hard fought 3-1 win. Game three in Houston began well for the visitors who used homeruns from Pancho Sousa and Luis Casteneda to build an early 5-1 lead, but a costly error by Jose Villalobos and a rare implosion by the bullpen sunk Indianapolis, as Houston took full advantage eventually running out comfortable 10-5 winners. Game 4 was the turn of the home side to build an early lead when C Marv Wilson clubbed a two-run homer in the second inning, Indianapolis tied the game with a pair of runs in the fifth only for LF Robert Harris to slug a solo homer and once again give Houston the lead. The visitors would lie down though and again tied the game on a Jose Villalobos RBI double in the seventh, neither team troubled the scorers from then until the bottom of the tenth, when with two out CF Julius Spencer drilled a walk-off RBI double to lift Houston to a 4-3 victory. Down 3-1 in the series Indianapolis were up against it for game 5, luckily for them Ken Kramer was on the mound and the wily veteran used all of his knowledge to hold Houston at bay while the Racers offense went to town on his counterpart Clint Martin plating 7 runs and chasing Martin from the game after just four innings, Houston slowed the onslaught but could not mount a comeback as they fell to a 9-4 defeat. Having survived one elimination game Indianapolis knew they had to do it all again, Game 6 turned out to be a tight back and forth battle before Indianapolis snapped a 4-4 tie in the bottom of the eighth and closer Harvey Widdowes retired Houston in order in the ninth to set up a dramatic game seven. Houston entered the winner takes all decider low on confidence having blown their 3-1 series lead while Indianapolis seemingly had everything going their way being at home and with all the momentum. Racers starter Ramon Schoof showed off his class, pitching seven shutout innings as Indianapolis built a 4-0 lead heading into the eighth, Houston threw everything they had at the Racers bullpen forcing Indianapolis to use three pitchers to get through the inning, with the lead now 4-3 and Houston in the ascendency a 3-run homerun from Jose Cintron stopped the Stars dead in their tracks and gave the hometown Racers some breathing room. Houston mounted one last rally in the ninth but ultimately fell short, and when 37-year-old Greg Gray struck out 1B Ramon Martinez to end the game and deliver Indianapolis their fourth world title, fans and players alike went wild with joy. The series had been closer than most people predicted and even the most ardent Racer fans must have been worried when they found themselves 3-1 down, but through a combination of gritty determination and clutch play the 2037 Indianapolis Racers found a way to triumph.

2037 Playoff Recap

Divisional Series
EL: Charlotte 3-2 St. Louis, Indianapolis 3-2 Boston
WL: Houston 3-1 Denver, Las Vegas 3-1 San Jose
Championship Series
EL: Indianapolis 4-1 Charlotte
WL: Houston 4-1 Las Vegas
World Series
Indianapolis 4-3 Houston

JayW UK · 11-04-2025, 04:05 AM

2037 Season Leaders and Awards

EL Batting
Hits
205 Jose Villalobos (IND)
200 David Evans (CHI)
200 Percy Sterrenberg (DET)
Batting Avg
.354 Glenn Hansen (STL)
.349 Jose Villalobos (IND)
.347 Pancho Sousa (IND)
Homeruns
45 Jerry Wright (NY)
39 Bryant Manton (TB)
35 Eduardo Moreno (BOS)
RBI
122 Jose Cintron (IND)
106 David Evans (CHI)
105 Steve Blanton (TB)
Stolen Bases
30 Don Bridges (NY)
27 Marc Smith (IND)
27 Pancho Sousa (IND)

EL Pitching
Wins
20 Les Scott (STL) *
19 Eugene Fey (CHI)
19 McKenzie Ransford (STL)
ERA
1.82 Les Scott (STL) *
2.34 Shane Olson (PHI)
2.67 Eugene Fey (CHI)
Strikeouts
340 Les Scott (STL) *
298 Shane Olson (PHI)
257 McKenzie Ransford (STL)
Saves
45 Steve Berg (TB)
45 Phil Hopkins (CHI)
39 Mike Mayfield (BOS)

WL Batting
Hits
200 Fernando Diaz (DEN)
184 Herminio Azurara (SF)
180 Jose Diaz (OKC)
Batting Avg
.352 Fernando Diaz (DEN)
.331 Sancho Guerra (SF)
.330 Danny Wheeler (LV)
Homeruns
38 Herminio Azurara (SF)
38 Joseph Floores (LV)
35 Fernando Hernandez (MIN)
RBI
122 Herminio Azurara (SF)
114 Joseph Floores (LV)
104 Fernando Hernandez (MIN)
Stolen Bases
47 Manny Chavez (SJ)
37 Juan Gutierrez (DAL)
36 Todd Browning (SEA)

WL Pitching
Wins
19 Rafer MacNeil (OKC)
18 Mitch Woodroffe (LA)
17 Steve Gream (MIN)
ERA
2.14 Steve Gream (MIN)
2.44 Rafer MacNeil (OKC)
2.47 Rick Sauer (SJ)
Strikeouts
272 Rafer MacNeil (OKC)
218 David Lyons (OMH)
213 Adrian Knapp (AUS)
Saves
49 Pablo Hernandez (HOU)
41 Philip Redmond (LV)
38 Dave Day (SJ)

2037 Season Awards

Batting Champion – St. Louis 1B Glenn Hansen (.354) held off Indianapolis pair Jose Villalobos (.349) and Pancho Sousa (.347) to claim the eastern league batting title, while in the west Denver’s Fernando Diaz (.352) won the title finishing well ahead of his nearest challengers, Sanfrancisco catcher Sancho Guerra (.331) and Las Vegas RF Danny Wheeler (.330)
Homerun Champion – New York 1B Jerry Wright (45) capped off an excellent season by taking home the EL award, in the west the title was shared between Sanfrancisco RF Herminio Azurara and Las Vegas 3B Joseph Floores who both slugged 38 homers on the season.
Outstanding Hitter – New York’s slugging 1B Jerry Wright (.261, 45 HR, 101 RBI) was the surprise winner in the eastern league taking the award ahead of Jose Villalobos (IND) and Brandon Townsend (CHA) who were most people’s choices. In the west Las Vegas 3B Joseph Floores (.282, 38 HR, 114 RBI) won in a landslide.
Outstanding Pitcher – an exceptional triple crown season from St. Louis ace Les Scott (20-6, 1.82 ERA and an NABL record 340K) won him the EL award ahead of Indianapolis star Ramon Schoof (19-4, 2.77 ERA). The western league award was won for the second consecutive year by OKC’s Rafer MacNeil (19-7, 2.44 ERA, 272K).
Rookie of the Year – Atlanta’s brilliant young catcher Luis Guerra (.308, 33 HR, 96 RBI) took home the EL award by a landslide while in the west Las Vegas shortstop Joaquin Corona (.297, 6 HR, 45 RBI, 30 SB) held of challenges from young starters Bryan Marburg (SEA) and David Lyons (OMH) to take home the coveted award.
Manager of the Year – Indianapolis skipper Davey Johnstone collected the award in the east for leading the Racers to their fourth world championship while Houston’s Cipriano Gonzalez picked up the WL award for leading unfancied Houston all the way to the World Series.
Glove Wizard Awards EL - P Kane Conacher (BOS) - C Nicholas Tate (CHA) - 1B Pedro Escoriaza (WAS) - 2B Anibal Trueba (CHA) - 3B Percy Sterrenburg (DET) - SS Jose Mendoza (TB) - LF Rob Penney (BOS) - CF Doyle Arnold (WAS) - RF Peter Thomas (MIA)
Glove Wizard Awards WL – P Franklin Smith (LV) - C Danny Lunnard (KC) - 1B Jason King (PHO) - 2B Mike Brown (PHO) - 3B Joseph Floores (LV) - SS Christian Moore (DEN) - LF Alfonso Sosa (DAL) - CF Steve McCullough (OKC) - RF Danny Wheeler (LV)

Interesting Facts – Las Vegas improved upon their NABL record low for team strikeouts by reducing their 2036 total by a phenomenal 64 to set a new record with just 872 K’s on the season.
Both Seattle and San Jose took advantage of the speed on their roster smashing the old record for stolen bases in a season (171), Seattle racked up 188 while San Jose swiped 178. At the other end of the spectrum Charlotte’s roster was not build for speed with the Express managing 24 stolen bases on the season. St. Louis ace Les Scott became the first player in NABL history to strike out 15+ batters three times during a single season.
In just his second season in charge of Jacksonville, Juan Santos led the Dolphins to an 81-63 record and their first playoff appearance in more than a decade, a great start to his managerial career.

JayW UK · 11-06-2025, 03:57 AM

2038 Off-Season

After the 2037 player awards were handed out and before the NABL winter meetings signaled the start of the 2038 league year, the NABL Hall of Fame opened its doors to its newest inductee and as expected legendary pitcher Vince Little was the man. After a career spanning 19-years in which he played for five teams including stops in Atlanta, Tampa Bay and New York, Little retired in 2032 and left the game as the NABL’s all-time leader in wins, complete games and shutouts, he also won four Outstanding Pitcher awards along with the 2018 World Series with Atlanta, with Little’s enshrinement, the exclusive club grew by one to now number six ex-players. The 2038 league year kicked off with the league’s winter meetings and the announcement that active rosters would expand to 26 players, among the proposals discussed but ultimately shelved was the use of a Designated Hitter, it was the second time the DH rule proposal had been tabled and this time, just like the first, the owners had voted against it. While the winter meetings had been in session Las Vegas manager Luis Martinez had quietly announced his retirement from the game with the team moving quickly to find his replacement, Bruce Weaver from New Orleans was the man identified and after short discussions with the Blues, Weaver was released from his contract and duly became the seventh manager of the Las Vegas Gamblers. In Atlanta patience ran out for manager Jim Scheid as the Flames called time on his run with the team, with the future looking brighter with several young stars in the making, the Atlanta job appeared to be one of the more sought-after positions available. Another Southeast division team parting ways with their manager was Charlotte, who despite a run to the ELCS moved on from skipper Allan Fullerton hiring former Philadelphia pitching coach Judd Murray as his replacement. New Orleans became the third Southeast division team to hire a new skipper for the upcoming season when Rob Nava was named as their new manager, Nava was poached from Minneapolis where he had spent the last decade cutting his teeth as their hitting coach. OKC and incumbent manager Roberto Rodriguez couldn’t agree on a new contract and so when negotiations hit an impasse, Rodriguez looked for other opportunities, eventually landing the Atlanta job leaving the Outlaws scrambling to fill their managerial vacancy, and in a curious turn of events they chose former Atlanta man Jim Scheid to fill the void. Cleveland owner Edwin Colon was nothing if not a patient man, but with his team mired in financial trouble with poor performance on the field and dwindling crowds off it, he made his feelings known, as both long serving GM Miguel Megallas and manager J.J Beck were served notice that if things didn’t improve then changes would be made.
On the back of their playoff run Denver got busy in Free Agency, bringing in Boston’s veteran shortstop Mario Cristo on a 4-year $80M deal, Phoenix LF John Binet for $94M over five years and persuading star outfielder Ramon Vega to commit to a new 2-year $42M deal. To balance the books the Wildcats had to let several key performers go, 2B Jack Underwood departed for Boston and a $32M two-year deal, star closer Josh Renshaw left for World Champions Indianapolis, signing on the dotted line for three years and $43M (a record contract for a relief pitcher) and pitcher Caden Duncan joined Tampa Bay for three years. Baltimore said goodbye to legend Dixon Bodean who headed to WL champions Houston, signing a one-year $19.4M deal to chase another ring, the Bulls also lost pitcher Octavio Cortal who moved on to Charlotte for a healthy $18M a year, to replace Cortal Baltimore managed to coax Cristaobal Chapa out of Dallas, landing him on a very reasonable 2-year $35M deal. The biggest deal by far featured former Los Angeles pitcher Mitch Woodroffe, who signed a monster 6-year $145M deal with St. Louis where he would team up with McKenzie Ransford, Les Scott and Darrell Haney giving the Reds the most dominant pitching rotation in the NABL. After leaving Indianapolis with his second championship ring veteran closer Greg Gray, soon to turn 38, found himself a new home signing a two-year deal with Charlotte to provide veteran leadership to their bullpen, another team chasing a veteran presence was Seattle, who lured former Sanfrancisco 1B Andres Romero away from Charlotte on a four-year $44M deal. Looking for a team to take on the final year of 1B Jamie Boden’s bloated contract, San Diego found a willing partner in the form of Dallas who sent two mid-round draft picks (8th and 12th) to the Mariners for Boden who, having missed all but 20 games in 2037 with a chronic back issue, was nearing full fitness and ready to play but found himself surplus to requirements in San Diego.
Where the previous season’s high school draft class had been underwhelming the 2038 edition was anything but, with no fewer than six players, outfielders Keith Brammer, Jerry Belper, Hamilton Dunbar and Brandon Spence along with pitchers Edward Fisher and Ray Phillips all garnering interest from teams picking in the top ten. However just as in 2037 the cream of the crop was the best college talent available, led by Texas A&M pitcher Dave Lee with a mix of pitches and control that marked him out as a future ace, catcher Oliver McKenzie, who’s work behind the dish was already NABL ready even if his swing wasn’t and with Alabama’s LF Jonah Covington and UNC’s CF Colton Miller both highly regarded in scouting circles, the top of the 2038 draft was looking particularly strong.
On draft night it was not a surprise when San Diego chose a pitcher first overall, their choice of player was what left many observers scratching their heads, rather than taking Texas A&M’s Dave Lee (the most polished prospect available) the Mariners instead called the name of high school prospect Edward fisher. Cleveland decided to pass on Lee as well, taking Alabama LF Jonah Covington second, New Orleans also decided against drafting Lee, picking LF Keith Brammer instead, in fact the next five franchises all passed on Lee as well, #4 Austin (CF Colton Miller), #5 Cleveland (CF Hamilton Dunbar), #6 Phoenix (RF Brandon Spence), #7 Dallas (P Ray Phillips) and #8 Washington (C Oliver McKenzie) before Atlanta finally called Lee’s name with the ninth pick. The only other prospect touted as a top ten pick to slide further than Lee was Jerry Belper who dropped to #14 where Minneapolis ended his fall.
With spring training complete BNN released their predictions for the upcoming season. The Atlantic division would be a two-horse race between Boston and New York with Washington expected to push for the EL Wildcard spot, the Central division was predicted to see defending champions Indianapolis do battle with St. Louis, owners of the #1 ranked pitching staff in the NABL, Chicago were a difficult team to define with some pundits having them winning the division whilst others had them way off the pace. With the seats under Cleveland GM Miguel Megallas and manager J.J Beck red hot, Cleveland needed to improve drastically but most prediction models had them once again in the running for the number one overall draft pick. The Southeast division was expected to be a close three-way battle between Charlotte, who could boast the most talented roster in the division but had the inexperienced first-time manager Judd Murray in charge, Tampa Bay who had returned most of the key performers from 2037 and up-and-coming Atlanta, who were expecting big things from new manager Roberto Rodriguez and their young talented roster.
Denver’s wheeling and dealing in the off-season had them as early favourites to repeat as Midwest division champs although both Oklahoma City and Minneapolis would have something to say about that, Kansas City and Omaha were predicted to have winning seasons making the Midwest the division to watch. Las Vegas and Houston would fight it out for the Southwest crown with none of the other three teams expected to break the 70-win barrier while the Pacific division would see Seattle join San Jose, Sanfrancisco and Los Angeles in a four-way fight for the title with San Jose the team being tipped to emerge victorious.

JayW UK · 11-10-2025, 03:57 AM

2038 Regular Season

Eastern League Review

Boston (91-71) fused youth, LF Rob Penney (24 y/o) and CF Weldon Render (25 y/o) with experience Jared Guest (34 y/o) and 2B Jack Underwood (40 y/o) to create the league’s most potent offense (207 HR’s) on their way to their third consecutive Atlantic division title. New York failed to take advantage of the EL’s best pitching staff as their offense, with the exception of 1B Jerry Wright (.284, 43 HR, 104 RBI) underperformed, leaving the Senators to settle for the runners-up spot five games back, Washington also boasted one of the better EL pitching staffs but much like New York their offense underwhelmed (catcher Aaron Harris, 39 HR’s and 97 RBI’s the only real threat) as the Generals finished third with an 86-76 record (manager Dave Wildridge performing miracles having overseen a 25-win improvement after his first two years in charge). Even with strong seasons from 1B Matt Henderson (.335, 29 HR, 87 RBI) and pitchers Shane Olson (15-10, 2.40 ERA) and David Adams (17-8, 3.74 ERA), Philadelphia could only finish fourth with an 83-79 record, whilst bringing up the rear were Baltimore (80-82) who’s wait for a first winning season in franchise history continued.
In the Central division, Indianapolis, with LF Jose Cintron (.271, 38 HR, 112 RBI), 3B Jose Villalobos (.341, 10 HR, 90 RBI) and P Ramon Schoof (18-8, 3.30 ERA) firing on all cylinders, and a lockdown bullpen headed by new recruit Josh Renshaw (12-6, 41 SV, 1.85 ERA in 74 games) and Harvey Widdowes (5-2, 4 SV, 1.47 ERA in 86 games) took the division title with an NABL best 104-58 record while a resurgent Chicago, buoyed by excellent seasons from 2B David Evans (.362, 24 HR, 109 RBI) and pitcher Seung-Jae Park (22-6, 2.78 ERA) pushed the Racers all the way, eventually finishing with a franchise best 100-62 finish. Detroit and St. Louis ended the season tied with identical 71-91 records with both teams fielding below average offenses but where in St. Louis it was injuries that caused their pitching staff to struggle, in Detroit, plain old lack of talent created their problems (David Elder 9-13, 3.27 ERA by far the most impressive pitcher on their roster). Once again in the division basement were Cleveland, as infighting and feuding left the Corsairs hopelessly adrift at the foot of the standings with only 59 wins and resulted in wholesale front office and managerial changes at seasons end.
The Southeast division belonged to Atlanta who cruised to a 98-64 record, with Dillon Furr (17-8, 3.73 ERA) and Benton Hartman (13-6, 3.35 ERA) topping their rotation and with 24-year-old catcher Luis Guerra (.290, 27 HR, 103) leading the offense, the Flames triumphantly ended their 15-year wait for a return to the postseason while Tampa Bay, paced by LF Joe Scott (.315, 33 HR, 95 RBI) and RF Bryant Manton (27 HR, 84 RBI) never truly threatened to catch Atlanta, eventually finishing well off the pace with an 86-76 record. Judd Murray’s first season in Charlotte was not a success as even though Charlotte’s offense, featuring the likes of LF Daron Murphy (.292, 35 HR, 85 RBI) and RF Michael Miller .333, 22 HR, 70 RBI) scored plenty of runs their pitching was abysmal, leading to the Express finishing a disappointing 79-83 and ending their three-year run as division champs. New Orleans (63-99) finished fourth and had their own problems with pitching (a 5.02 team ERA the worst in the NABL) but were saved from a fifth consecutive bottom of the division finish by Miami (62-100) who endured their worst campaign for twelve years.

Final Standings

Atlantic Division
Boston 91-71*
New York 86-76
Washington 86-76
Philadelphia 83-79
Baltimore 80-82

Central Division
Indianapolis 104-58*
Chicago 100-62*
Detroit 71-91
St. Louis 71-91
Cleveland 59-103

Southeast Division
Atlanta 98-64*
Tampa Bay 86-76
Charlotte 79-83
New Orleans 63-99
Miami 62-100

JayW UK · 11-10-2025, 03:59 AM

2038 Regular Season

Western League Review

Over in the west, Oklahoma City (93-69), with Rafer MacNeil (19-6, 2.76 ERA) once again leading a strong rotation and an offense built on Power, Chance Merritt (31 HR’s), 1B Randy Harrington (28 HR’s) and 3B Xavier Cisneros (26 HR’s) and Speed 2B Jose Diaz (43 SB’s) the Outlaws unseated Denver and returned to the summit of the Midwest division for the sixth time in seven years. Despite their off-season spending, Denver failed to build on their successful 2037 campaign slipping back to finish second six games back from OKC while Minneapolis (86-76) ended up one game further back in the standings. The Bears inconsistency cost them a chance to challenge OKC for the division as their offense, led by 1B Fernando Hernandez (.276, 35 HR, 103 RBI), RF Glenn McGhee (.318, 30 HR, 103 RBI) and C Tom Walsh (.288, 27 HR, 82 RBI) scored in bunches but despite strong seasons from Steve Gream (17-11, 2.92 ERA) and Rick West (16-7, 3.49 ERA) their pitchers largely underperformed. With 21-year-old rookie 3B Mario Balderas (.318, 32 HR, 81 RBI) leading the way, Kansas City (84-78) finally ended eight years of frustration by finishing with a winning record while Omaha (80-82) actually recorded a better record than in 2037 but still ended up in the division basement.
Not even the loss of star RF Danny Wheeler (.358, 14 HR, 60 RBI in 70 games) to a season ending knee injury in July could stop Las Vegas from strolling to the Southwest division crown, the Gamblers set a new NABL record, winning an incredible 114 games to enter the playoffs as heavy favourites to win the World Series. Trailing in their wake, a massive 32 games back were Houston (82-80) and even the best efforts of RF Dixon Bodean (.346, 23 HR, 79 RBI in 111 games) and 3B Bryant Deshields (.279, 24 HR, 99 RBI) couldn’t propel the Stars into playoff contention. Dallas (70-92) were disappointing offensively with the trio of C Hanus Koliewski (.261, 31 HR, 90 RBI), LF Alfonso Sosa (.276, 30 HR, 99 RBI) and the now 37-year-old 1B Jamie Boden (.253, 28 HR, 78 RBI) combining for nearly two-thirds of the Mustangs homeruns on the season. Phoenix had their issues with pitching, surrendering a league worst 884 runs on the season while Austin wasn’t far behind surrendering 822, both teams struggled to attract the crowds as just 1.2M turned out to see Phoenix with Austin enticing marginally more to see their games.
Despite star 3B Tom Sterling having a somewhat down year by his standards (.271, 22 HR, 88 RBI) San Jose still managed to produce, riding the WL’s #2 scoring offense along with solid starting pitching and a lights-out bullpen (2.06 ERA combined) the Spartans cruised to the Pacific division crown winning 100 games for the first time in franchise history. Trailing in their wake were Sanfrancisco (85-77) who’s offense, led by the trio of LF Francisco Perez (.365, 22 HR, 103 RBI), CF Herminio Azurara (.310, 25 HR, 100 RBI) and C Sancho Guerra (.309, 20 HR, 78 RBI), kept them in most games but ultimately the lack of pitching cost them a chance at the wildcard spot (the Gold finished the season just two games back from Denver). The expected playoff push did not materialise in Los Angeles (74-88), as the Lynx hampered by injuries to key players struggled all season long, eventually finishing tied with Seattle and likely ending manager John Cochran’s run with the team. Seattle for their part continued to try to develop their young talent with LF Patrick Richardson and pitchers Bryan Marburg and Corvin Curry exceeding expectations, while San Diego’s pitchers, led by Willie Hampton (11-14, 4.18 ERA) and Peter Thompson (7-10, 3.64 ERA) played better than their records suggested held back by the Mariners offense, which failed to even find first gear scoring a paltry 3.5 runs per game, leaving the Mariners mired at the foot of the standings with a 65-97 record.

Final Standings

Midwest Division
Oklahoma City 93-69*
Denver 87-75*
Minneapolis 86-76
Kansas City 84-78
Omaha 80-82

Southwest Division
Las Vegas 114-48*
Houston 82-80
Dallas 70-92
Phoenix 66-96
Austin 51-111

Pacific Division
San Jose 100-62*
Sanfrancisco 85-77
Los Angeles 74-88
Seattle 74-88
San Diego 65-97

JayW UK · 11-13-2025, 04:16 AM

2038 Season Notes

April 9th – just seven games into the campaign, Indianapolis CF Marc Smith suffered a season ending elbow injury.
April 15th – Boston’s rotation took a big hit when starter Greg Bailey suffered a torn rotator cuff ruling him out for at least 12 months.
April 16th – Indianapolis LF Jose Cintron scored his 1000th career run as the Racers downed Atlanta 5-3.
April 17th – Seattle LF Stephen Thomas reached the 1000 runs scored threshold in the Pioneers victory over Omaha.
April 22nd – OKC 3B Xavier Cisneros blasted a trio of homeruns as the Outlaws defeated Minneapolis 6-5.
April 23rd – OKC 1B Randy Harrington scored his 1000th career run as the Outlaws edged out Minneapolis for the second day in a row.
April 28th – Indianapolis starter Ramon Schoof was finally charged with a loss after 30 starts, a streak that began back on June 1st 2037.
May 2nd – OKC RF Chance Merritt drew 5 walks against Sanfrancisco equaling the NABL record.
May 5th – Phoenix closer Uram Park blew his first save in 63 attempts, a streak that started way back in April 2035 when he was with Omaha.
May 6th – Boston 3B Eric King was suspended by NABL commissioner Buddy McHugh for nine games for starting a brawl with Washington pitcher Jose Ibanez.
May 8th – LA catcher Andrew Lewis collected a pair of hits against Cleveland, both of them homeruns and both of them also being Grand-Slams!! as Los Angeles saw off the Corsairs 12-7.
May 16th – Kansas City pitcher Gerald Clark hit a Grand-Slam as the Tornadoes beat Denver 5-3.
May 19th – Washington catcher Aaron Harris blasted a walk-off homer in the Generals 4-3 victory over Indianapolis, the homerun was all-the-more-sweeter as it was the 300th of Harris’ career.
May 29th – Las Vegas catcher Chris Coates blasted the 300th homerun of his career as the Gamblers fell 5-4 against Houston.
June 3rd – Pancho Sousa, Indianapolis’ star shortstop scored the 1000th run of his career.
June 8th – Atlanta catcher Luis Guerra hit three solo homeruns in a losing effort as the Flames fell 7-5 to Baltimore.
June 16th – Baltimore ace Rajion Samit suffered a torn labrum ending his season, in 13 games Samit was a healthy 7-4, 2.79 ERA
June 20th – Dallas star Alfonso Sosa scored the 1000th run of his career on a Jamie Boden sacrifice fly.
June 21st – St. Louis starter Darrell Haney suffered a forearm injury sidelining him for 8 weeks.
June 23rd – LA starter Kade Blackford’s disappointing campaign continued when he was ruled out for the rest of the season with a ruptured finger tendon. In 13 starts on the season he had struggled to a 2-4, 3.97 ERA record.
June 24th – 1B Matt Henderson collected the 2500th hit of his illustrious career in Philadelphia’s victory over division rivals Washington.
July 1st – OKC 2B Jose Diaz reached 2000 career hits as the Outlaws dropped a close one to Dallas.
July 3rd – New York pitcher Brent Brown became the second pitcher on the year to blast a Grand-Slam.
July 9th – Minneapolis LF Jose Campos was traded to Phoenix for relievers Leland Watson and James Lawson, opening up playing time for the teams 2033 first round pick Stu Leach.
July 11th – New York RF Roy Higgins suffered a torn meniscus in his left knee, ruling him out until at least September.
July 12th – Las Vegas SS Joaquin Corona was held hitless in four at bats by Minneapolis ending his 26-game hitting streak.
July 21st – Washington catcher Aaron Harris drove in the 1000th run of his career with an RBI double.
July 22nd – St. Louis 2B Santiago Torres had a field day on the bases, swiping four bags as the Reds dismantle Philadelphia 12-3.
July 23rd – Kansas City shortstop Cameron Toscano was the reason the Tornadoes overcame OKC 13-11, collecting four hits and eight RBI’s.
July 27th – Sanfrancisco RF Francisco Perez was key in the Gold’s 7-5 victory over OKC, collecting six hits and driving in four runs.
July 28th – with their season spiraling out of control with a disastrous 31-73 record, Austin made a move, firing manager Billy Jackson and naming former Cleveland player Ephraim Bonekamp as his replacement (Bonekamp was the first Dutch manager in NABL history)
July 28th – Las Vegas star Danny Wheeler suffered a serious knee injury, ending his season prematurely. At the time of his injury Wheeler was the hottest player in baseball, as during July he had hit a scorching .436 with 6 homeruns and 23 RBI's in 23 games.
July 29th – The first job for Ephraim Bonekamp to do after being named manager of Austin was give the green-light for the team to trade incumbent 2B Dan Robertson to Washington for a pair of prospects (1B Carlos Costa and C Nick Daniels)
July 29th – Oklahoma City bolstered their bullpen by trading three up-and-coming prospects, 1B Edgardo Cardoza, SP Daniel Heading and SS Carlos Rodriguez, to Phoenix for veteran closer Uram Park.
July 30th – St. Louis pitcher Mitch Woodroffe was forced to the DL with Shoulder inflammation, he would be sidelined for three weeks.
July 31st – another St. Louis pitcher suffered an injury, this time McKenzie Ransford who suffered an ankle sprain that would rule him out until September. The rash of pitching injuries this close to the trading deadline left St. Louis little time to pull off any deals for reinforcements.
August 1st – Las Vegas pitcher Angel Castro reached 2500 career strikeouts.
August 2nd – SF 3B Matt Romero went 3-for-4 in a losing effort against Los Angeles, but still had cause to celebrate as the third hit was the 2000th of his career.
August 3rd – Dallas LF Alfonso Sosa collected his 300th career homerun in style, connecting on a walk-off 2-RBI Homerun as the Mustangs saw off Houston 3-1.
August 4th- ageless Dixon Bodean continued adding to his legacy, reaching the 4500-hit plateau.
August 10th – Las Vegas catcher Chris Coates collected his 1000th career RBI in a win over Seattle.
August 11th – Indianapolis star Jose Cintron blasted the 400th homerun of his career as the Racers downed Chicago.
August 12th – Houston’s Dixon Bodean suffered a season ending back injury in the Stars defeat at the hands of Dallas, through 111 games Bodean was leading the team in batting (.346, 23 HR, 79 RBI) his loss was a huge blow to Houston’s playoff hopes.
August 17th-25th – Boston catcher Eduardo Moreno blasted homeruns in seven consecutive games equaling Nelson Vasquez’s NABL record.
August 18th – Chicago CF Josh Deric belted four doubles in a losing effort against New York.
August 19th – Washington 3B Lee Morgan had a career day in the Generals big win over Detroit, he went 3-for-3, with a double and a pair of homeruns including a Grand-Slam, driving in 8 runs.
August 23rd – Boston placed 3B Eric King on the 60-day DL with a shoulder injury ending his season.
August 29th – Mitch Woodroffe’s shoulder problems were back forcing St. Louis to shut him down for the season. The first season of his mega deal had not gone to plan for Woodroffe, playing in 26 games his 10-9, 3.75 ERA record was not a good enough return on St. Louis’s investment
September 3rd – Denver suffered a blow to their playoff hopes, losing LF John Binet for the season with a broken leg.
September 4th – OKC 1B Randy Harrington had a big day in the Outlaws 14-5 win over Austin, going 3-for-4 with a pair of homeruns including a Grand-Slam and collecting 7 RBI’s, his big performance saw him reach the 1000 career RBI milestone.
September 5th – Boston RF Jared Guest suffered a torn Hamstring ruling him out for the rest of the season, the second key position player to be ruled out for the season.
September 8th – Chicago welcomed back pitcher Eugene Fey from a year out with injury, in Fey’s first game he pitched five shutout innings but was denied the win by a late bullpen slip-up.
September 10th – Baltimore 3B Julio Ramirez reached the 1000 career RBI milestone in style, blasting a three-run homerun as the Bulls beat New York.
September 16th – Indianapolis SS Pancho Sousa joined the 2000 hit club in the Racers 4-2 victory over Philadelphia.
September 17th – Las Vegas CF Bryan Dale suffered broken ribs in a collision with teammate Vaughan Snyder, although he would miss the remainder of the regular season Las Vegas were hopeful he could return at some point in the playoffs.
September 18th – on his return to action New York RF Roy Higgins carried on where he left off smacking five hits in a Senators victory over Tampa Bay.
September 20th – Minneapolis RF Glenn McGhee played a huge role in the Bears victory over Oklahoma City, blasting three homeruns including the winning walk-off homer in the bottom of the tenth as Minneapolis edged a shootout 12-11.
September 21st – Sanfrancisco 3B Matt Romero scored the 1000th run of his career.

JayW UK · 11-16-2025, 08:59 AM

2038 Playoffs

Divisional Round

In the east Boston would matchup with #1 seed Indianapolis in a re-match of the previous season’s divisional round between the two, while Atlanta, back in the playoffs for the first time in fifteen years would take on Chicago in a mouthwatering clash. In the west Las Vegas, owners of the best ever regular season record, faced off against wildcard team Denver, while Pacific division winners San Jose, would renew their playoff rivalry with OKC.

The series between defending champions Indianapolis and Boston saw a re-match of their divisional round matchup from the previous year with roles reversed, with Indianapolis now the defending champions and Boston aiming to unseat them. Each team featured offenses that could score runs for fun, with Boston relying heavily on the long ball (an NABL best 207 HR’s on the season) while Indianapolis preferred to get men on base (.352 OBP) to do their damage. With the wealth of offensive weapons at each team’s disposal the series would likely be won or lost with pitching, both staffs had had their troubles during the season but the Racers did have home-field advantage and ace Ramon Schoof had been almost unbeatable at Raceway Stadium (15-2, 2.24 ERA). Game one was the opposite of what most people expected as both starters, Ramon Schoof (IND) and Brett Knight (BOS), pitched deep into the game before Pilgrims catcher Eduardo Moreno slammed a ninth inning solo homerun off Racers reliever Jose Franco to eventually lift Boston to a hard fought 3-2 series opening victory. Game two was much the same with pitching holding sway until Boston LF Rob Penney broke Indianapolis hearts with a late 2-run homer to seal another 3-2 Boston victory. Back in Boston, game three continued the surprising trend as both starters held the opposition in check through the opening five frames, Indianapolis broke the deadlock on a CF Pancho Sousa RBI-Double in the top of the sixth, but failed to build on that lead when 3B Jose Villalobos hit into a double play to end the threat. That missed opportunity loomed large when next inning Boston 1B Alberto Rangel drilled a three-run blast to turn the game on its head, the Pilgrims added an insurance run in the eighth before Mike Mayfield retired the Racers in order to cap off Boston’s impressive series sweep. Indianapolis scored just five runs during the series (their regular season average per game was five) while also being becoming the latest defending champion to exit the playoffs at the first hurdle, a run that now extended to six straight years.

The other ELDS was the eagerly awaited matchup between Atlanta and Chicago, with the teams boasting the NABL’s top two scoring offenses and solid pitching an entertaining series was expected. On the occasion of their first meaningful postseason game in fifteen years it seemed Atlanta got stage fright, as the best pitcher in baseball Seung-Jae Park delivered a pitching clinic (7.0 IP,3H, 1R, 8K) and Chicago rolled to a comfortable 5-1 victory. The following night was a similar story as once again the home town Flames laid an egg, being out-hit 11-4 and making two costly errors in allowing Chicago to cruise to a 6-1 win leaving Atlanta on the verge of elimination. Mario Chavez took the mound for Chicago in game three, looking to deal the knockout blow to Atlanta’s hopes, and for five innings he held the Flames in check as the Zephyrs built a two-run lead, a RF Mike Hicks solo homerun and a 2-RBI double from CF Alex Blanca chased Chavez from the game and gave Atlanta their first lead of the series. Chicago’s Enrique Rodriguez coughed up another three runs in the seventh before the Flames padded their lead with a further two in the eighth, Chicago briefly threatened in the ninth, putting men on the corners before a double play put an end to the Zephyrs rally as Atlanta avoided the series sweep and elimination with an 8-2 victory. With ace Seung-Jae Park on the mound for game four Chicago fans were in confident mood but someone must have given Atlanta the wrong script as the Flames buried Park under an avalanche of runs, chasing him from the game in the second inning having surrendered seven runs while retiring only three of the eleven batters he faced. Chicago managed to stem the tide of runs the rest of the way but emptied their bullpen doing so and had to resort to using position player Peter Reddy to pitch the ninth as Atlanta waltzed to an easy 13-2 series tying victory. Back home in Atlanta and full of confidence for the decider, the Flames started where they left off in game four, battering Chicago starter Eugene Fey into submission scoring six early runs as they built a commanding seven run lead. Far from meekly laying down Chicago fought back, homeruns from Aaron Payton, Julio Cruz and Dave Cantrell helped cut the Flames lead to two heading into the final frame, where despite a nervy ninth for the home fans, Flames closer Rich Robinson got the job done as Atlanta held on for a 7-5 series clinching win.

Wildcard team Denver entered their series with 114-win Las Vegas as heavy underdogs, the Gamblers boasted the #1 scoring offense and the best pitching staff in the NABL by far and were many peoples favourite to lift the World Series. The wildcats by contrast led the WL in homeruns with 193 (second only to Boston in the NABL) but struggled to consistently put men on base to take advantage of their power, Denver also featured an erratic pitching staff that on their day could win a game by themselves but on another, just as easily lose a game.
The series opened in Las Vegas and the home side quickly got into a rhythm, scoring early and building a 3-0 lead, veteran starter Angel Castro was solid through six innings but an uncharacteristic collapse by the Gamblers bullpen (allowing 5 runs over the final two frames) swung the game in Denver’s favour as the Wildcats surprised Las Vegas to steal the series opener 5-3. Denver were far from their best the following night, putting on a wild rollercoaster ride performance featuring plenty of good (4 hits, 13 strikeouts) and plenty of bad (11 walks, 3 hit batsmen). In the pivotal sixth inning three Denver pitchers (starter Ivan Martinez along with relievers Jonathan Shearne and Randall Bradford) combined for three strikeouts, five walks, a hit batsman, a wild pitch and a balk, the Wildcats also made a pair of errors in the inning for good measure, all told ten Las Vegas batters came to the plate and faced a total of 38 pitches without once managing to make contact (not even a foul ball)!! Amazingly, despite all the help Las Vegas only scored three runs on the day and even though the Gamblers did not make the most of their chances, Denver never really threatened to make any inroads as strong pitching performances from Holden Willis and Phil Redmond held the Wildcats in check as the Gamblers evened the series with a 3-0 win. In game three both starters, Jesus Delgado (LV) and Valentin Morales (DEN) went six innings and put up identical numbers (6IP, 5H, 2ER, 2BB, 6K), Denver pushed ahead on 1B Daniel Kirk’s 2-run homer in the seventh only for 3B Joseph Floores and OF Khayn Triplett to hit homeruns for Las Vegas as the Gamblers scraped home 5-4 to edge ahead in the series. Game four was another close battle early on, before Denver broke the game open scoring six unanswered (including a four-run outburst in the 8th) to even the series at two. Back home for the decider, Las Vegas edged into the lead on a 3B Joseph Floores homer only for Denver pitcher Ivan Martinez to belt a homerun of his own to even things up, the two teams continued trading scores until a SS Joaquin Corona 3-run blast pushed the Gamblers into a comfortable three run lead and despite a wobble in the ninth when Denver scored twice, Las Vegas held on for a 7-6 win and booked their place in the WLCS for the third year in a row.

Oklahoma City faced off against San Jose in the other WLDS looking for their first playoff series win against the Spartans (having lost their two previous meetings), both teams boasted strong pitching but San Jose had the edge because of their free scoring offense (#2 in the west) and in particular their aggressive baserunning (an NABL record 173 stolen bases). It didn’t take long for the Spartans to challenge OKC on the basepaths, lead-off man Roberto Gonzalez walked and then stole second where he was stranded, he was at it again in the third, reaching first before stealing second where once again the Spartans offense sputtered leaving him stuck on base. The Outlaws took the lead in the fourth when CF Steve McCulloch took Pedro Rosario deep for the first run of the series, and when OKC starter Mark Graham left the game after seven strong innings the Outlaws held a slim 2-1 advantage. That lead disappeared quickly as Ken Maynard surrendered 3-runs to put the hometown Spartans in control, San Jose closer Dave Day wasted little time seeing off OKC in the ninth to preserve the hard fought 4-2 victory. Game two saw an excellent pitching performance from OKC starter Rafer MacNeil (7.1IP, 5H, 1ER, 6K) as the Outlaws built a 4-1 lead, OKC survived a scare in the ninth when CF Doug Matthews blasted a 2-out, 2-run homer but closer Uram Park recovered to strike out 1B Lucio Guerrero to end the game and tie the series. Outlaw starter Robert Warwick certainly enjoyed pitching at home in game 3, surrendering two runs on just four hits through eight strong innings before handing over to closer Uram Park, in an eerily similar performance to his game two outing Park struggled, surrendering a solo homerun to Lucio Guerrero and leaving men on the corners for John Watkins to deal with, Watkins took just two pitches to close out the game, enticing Tom Sterling to hit tamely into a double play. With the Spartans facing elimination, OKC starter Mark Graham chose the wrong time to have a poor outing, lasting just 4.2 innings and allowing six runs to put San Jose in the driving seat, OKC made a game of it cutting the lead in half but a Juan Rosario 2-run homer wrapped things up for the Spartans sending the series to a deciding game five. A disastrous start to the game put OKC behind the eight ball in their quest to finally overcome the Spartans in the playoffs. San Jose used power hitting and aggressive baserunning to open an early six run lead, a spirited fightback by Outlaws fell just short, as they dropped the decider 6-5. The Spartans improved their playoff record to 3-0 against the Outlaws and marched onto the WLCS for the fourth time in six years.

JayW UK · 11-16-2025, 09:01 AM

2038 Playoffs

Championship Round

The EL pennant series was the fourth playoff meeting between Atlanta and Boston with the Flames yet to taste defeat (ending the Pilgrims postseason run three years in a row between 2016 and 2018). That proud record was in danger from the very first pitch as CF Weldon Render blasted the ball deep into the stands to give Boston an early lead, the pilgrims continued their barrage with both LF Rob Penney and 3B Steve Raines also going deep as they took an iron grip on the game, eventually cruising to a 9-2 opening night victory. Both starters (Dillon Furr for Atlanta and Gerald Helton for Boston) began well in game two, keeping the game scoreless through four innings, Atlanta broke the deadlock taking the lead in the fifth courtesy of a LF Alex Holt RBI double only for Dillon Furr and the defense to gift Boston the lead (2 errors and a HR surrendered). The Pilgrims needed no further invitation as they held the Flames scoreless the rest of the way to take a 2-0 series lead. A first inning homerun from CF Alex Blanca staked the Flames to an early lead in game three, but once again fielding miscues (another two errors) gifted the lead to Boston, unlike in game two these mistakes did not bury the Flames but instead spurred them on as Alex Blanca slammed a two-run homerun (his second of the night) to put them back in front. Alas the Flames could not hold onto the lead as a soul crushing bullpen collapse in the eighth (Boston blasted two homeruns and scored five runs in total) saw the Pilgrims emerge with a 7-4 win. With their backs to the wall and facing elimination Atlanta came out on the front foot for game four, Raul Osorio, 7.2 IP,3H, 1ER, 6K and Jackson Wells 1.1IP, 3K, produced the Flames best pitching performance of the playoffs, this coupled with timely scoring from the offense saw the Flames handle Boston with ease keeping their slim championship hopes alive. There was no repeat of their game four heroics for Atlanta the following night as Boston exploded for five runs over the opening two frames, homeruns for C Eduardo Moreno and LF Rob Penney in the middle innings took the game away from the Flames as the Pilgrims bounced Atlanta out of the playoffs with a 7-2 series clinching win, booking their place in the World Series for the second time in three years.

The WLCS saw Las Vegas meet San Jose in the playoffs for the third year in a row (and fourth time overall), the series promised to be an intriguing one featuring the best two teams in baseball. With not much to choose between them, Las Vegas were seen has having the slight edge courtesy of homefield advantage and their excellent team defense. San Jose 1B Manny Chavez provided the offensive spark in game one, blasting a pair of homeruns as the Spartans handed Las Vegas a humbling 5-1 defeat to open the series, the following night it was Las Vegas OF Khayn Triplett who provided the offensive fireworks, slamming his own pair of homeruns as Las Vegas evened the series ahead of three critical games in California. Game three saw Jesus Delgado (LV) and Rick Sauer (SJ) battle each other to a standstill before exiting after seven innings with the game tied at two apiece, things immediately began to get interesting as 3B Joseph Floores and LF Vaughan Snyder blasted homeruns to put the Gamblers in the driving seat, not to be outdone San Jose roared back in the bottom of the eighth with Manny Chavez and 1B Lucio Guerrero going deep to tie things up once again. Las Vegas took the lead in the top of the ninth on a CF John Smyth RBI double only for the usually reliable closer Philip Redmond to cough up the lead and allow the Spartans to send the game to extra innings. In the top of the twelfth the Gamblers once again edged ahead and once more the Spartans fought back, this time winning the game on a walk-off 2-run homer from catcher Juan Rosario. After the dramatic 8-7 walk-off win in game three, the Spartans were brought back down to earth in game four as veteran Las Vegas pitcher Angel Castro controlled proceedings from start to finish going the distance as the Gamblers tied the series with a comfortable 4-1 victory. San Jose were three outs from victory in game five when Las Vegas finally came to life, down 3-1 in the top of the ninth back-to-back singles from 1B Ed Matthews and RF Robert Frean were followed up by a huge homerun from star slugger Joseph Floores to put the Gamblers ahead. After Philip Redmond’s failure to close out game three, manager Bruce Weaver turned to Lorenzo Rodriguez for the save, and Rodriguez delivered, sitting the Spartans down in order to secure the come from behind 4-3 win. Back home in Nevada for the deciding game five Las Vegas set about dispatching the Spartans blasting into an early four run lead, San Jose were not done yet and clawed their way back into the game, closing the gap to one after seven. But that was as close as they got as 3B Joseph Floores slammed his fourth homerun of the series to put Las Vegas ahead by three, before Philip Redmond laid his ghosts to bed with a dominant showing in the ninth, striking out the side, as the Gamblers took the game 6-3 and booked their place in the World Series.

JayW UK · 11-16-2025, 09:03 AM

2038 Playoffs

World Series

WL champions Las Vegas welcomed CF Bryan Dale back from injury in time for the World Series, with John Smyth the unlucky man to step aside. Boston’s powerful offense gave them more than a puncher’s chance against the NABL’s best team in Las Vegas but with the home advantage plus the best pitching staff in the game the Gamblers were favoured to win the series in six. Game one was a tight battle until the seventh inning when CF Brayan Dale slugged a 2-run homerun (his second of the night) giving Las Vegas the lead, the Gamblers bullpen then took over retiring the final six Boston batters on just fifteen pitches to wrap up a 4-2 series opening win. Just as in the previous game, the first three innings of game two were tight with both starters in control, the teams traded runs in the fourth before Las Vegas took the lead in the fifth on a Joseph Floores homerun and never let go, their pitchers retiring 13 straight Pilgrim batters through the end of the 8th. George Shreeve singled to lead off the 9th, offering a glimmer of hope for Boston, but two batters later the game ended with Lucio Rodriguez hitting into a double play. Seventh inning homeruns from Las Vegas pair Joseph Floores and catcher Chris Coates broke open game three, with solid work from the Gamblers bullpen keeping the Boston hitters quiet the rest of the night Las Vegas won going away to open a 3-0 series lead. Game four saw Boston jump out to an early lead on a Rob Penney homerun before the game descended into chaos. In the fourth inning Las Vegas dangerman Joseph Floores was hit by an errant Brett Knight pitch for the second time on the night and the fourth time in the series. A furious Floores, who felt he was being targeted deliberately, charged the mound sparking a benches-clearing brawl, when the dust settled and order was restored, both Floores and Knight were ejected and proceedings continued. Las Vegas who seemed rattled by the whole affair never recovered, slipping to a disappointing 5-1 defeat. Before the start of game five Floores and Knight received their punishment for their part in the ugly scenes during the previous game, both players were suspended for three games and would play no further part in the series. Game five saw both team’s trade scores early before Bryan Dale’s 2-RBI double put Las Vegas on course for a series clinching win but an Eduardo Moreno 2-run homer and a pinch-hit homerun from Trent Lambert turned the game on its head as Boston held off Las Vegas to send the series back to Nevada. Game six was another hotly contested one with first Las Vegas then Boston being in control. In the top if the eighth with bases loaded and no-one out, Boston seemed primed to take the lead, but Gamblers reliever Michinori Morita struck out Steve Raines before enticing veteran 2B Jack Underwood to hit into an inning ending double play. Las Vegas took full advantage in the home half as Bryan Dale smashed a 2-RBI single to put the Gamblers on the verge of their second World Championship, Philip Redmond took the mound for the ninth and put the final exclamation mark on a wonderful season for Las Vegas with a three-strikeout inning. The return from injury of CF Bryan Dale proved pivotal for Las Vegas, he was named series MVP for his performance (.427, 2 HR, 8 RBI’s) as the Gamblers World Series victory brought the curtain down on the NABL’s first twenty-five years of existence.

2038 Playoff Recap

Divisional Series
EL: Atlanta 3-2 Chicago, Boston 3-0 Indianapolis
WL: Las Vegas 3-2 Denver, San Jose 3-2 Oklahoma City
Championship Series
EL: Boston 4-1 Atlanta
WL: Las Vegas 4-2 San Jose
World Series
Las Vegas 4-2 Boston

JayW UK · 11-19-2025, 04:10 AM

2038 Season Leaders and Awards

EL Batting
Hits
221 David Evans (CHI)
206 Jose Villalobos (IND)
200 Glenn Hansen (STL)
Batting Avg
.362 David Evans (CHI)
.341 Jose Villalobos (IND)
.341 Pancho Sousa (IND)
Homeruns
43 Jerry Wright (NY)
39 Aaron Harris (WAS)
38 Jose Cintron (IND)
RBI
112 Jose Cintron (IND)
109 David Evans (CHI)
104 Jerry Wright (NY)
Stolen Bases
41 Pancho Sousa (IND)
33 Marcos Casa (WAS)
33 Michael Sleigh (TB)

EL Pitching
Wins
22 Seung-Jae Park (CHI)
18 Ramon Schoof (IND)
17 David Adams (PHI)
ERA
2.40 Shane Olson (PHI)
2.78 Seung-Jae Park (CHI)
2.89 Les Scott (STL)
Strikeouts
287 Les Scott (STL)
265 Shane Olson
253 cristobal Chapa (BAL)
Saves
44 Steve Berg (TB)
41 Josh Renshaw (IND)
41 Rich Sutton (CHA)

WL Batting
Hits
224 Francisco Perez (SF)
215 Joaquin Corona (LV)
203 Hector Soto (HOU)
Batting Avg
.371 Joaquin Corona (LV)
.365 Francisco Perez (SF)
.337 Doug Matthews (SJ)
Homeruns
35 Fernando Hernandez (MIN)
34 Gary Davis (KC)
32 Mario Balderas (KC)
RBI
121 Juan Torres (KC)
106 Randy Harrington (OKC)
103 Fernando Hernandez (MIN)
Stolen Bases
45 Joaquin Corona (LV)
43 Jose Diaz (OKC)
43 Julius Spencer (HOU)

WL Pitching
Wins
19 Rafer MacNeil (OKC)
19 Holden Willis (LV)
18 Angel Castro (LV)
ERA
2.72 Julio Torres (LA)
2.76 Rafer MacNeil (OKC)
2.78 David Lyons (OMH)
Strikeouts
254 Rafer MacNeil (OKC)
236 David Lyons (OMH)
225 Jesus Delgado (LV)
Saves
51 Philip Redmond (LV)
47 Dave Day (SJ)
43 Barton Rogers (SF)

2038 Season Awards

Batting Champion – Chicago’s 2B David Evans (.362) won the EL batting title beating Indianapolis duo Jose Villalobos and Pancho Sousa (both .341). Las Vegas shortstop Joaquin Corona (.371) triumphed in the west after a season long battle with Sanfrancisco star Francisco Perez (.365)
Homerun Champion – in the east New York 1B Jerry Wright (43) held off Washington catcher Aaron Harris (39) to win his second consecutive title. Minneapolis 1B Fernando Hernandez (35) edged Kansas City’s Gary Davis (34) to win the WL title.
Outstanding Hitter – Chicago star David Evans (.362, 24 HR, 109 RBI) secured his first Outstanding Hitter Award, narrowly pipping New York’s Jerry Wright to the honour. In the west Sanfrancisco’s Francisco Perez (.365, 22 HR, 103 RBI) narrowly beat Las Vegas star Joaquin Corona (.371, 6 HR, 56 RBI, 45 SB) to claim his maiden award.
Outstanding Pitcher – Chicago ace Seung-Jae Park (22-6, 2.78 ERA) was the unanimous winner in the east while in the west OKC’s Rafer MacNeil (19-6, 2.76 ERA) held off a strong challenge from Minneapolis star Steve Gream (17-11, 2.92 ERA) to claim his third consecutive OPA
Rookie of the Year – Indianapolis young RF Jim Mailes (.295, 13 HR, 91 RBI) beat out Baltimore LF Nick Romero (.276, 18 HR, 81 RBI) to win the EL award. Kansas City’s 21-year-old 3B Mario Balderas (.318, 32 HR, 81 RBI) was named the unanimous winner in the west.
Manager of the Year – in the east Atlanta manager Roberto Rodriguez took home the award for his outstanding work leading the Flames to the playoffs. The western league winner could only ever be one man, Las Vegas manager Bruce Weaver, after he masterminded the Gamblers record breaking run to the World Series title.
Glove Wizard Awards EL – P Edward Williams (CLE) - C Gabriel Lopez (DET) – 1B Jerry Wright (NY) – 2B Anibal Trueba (CHA) – 3B Jose Villalobos (IND) – SS George Shreeve (BOS) – LF Rusty Barnes (CLE) – CF Alex Bayley (CLE) – RF Mike Hicks (ATL)
Glove Wizard Awards WL – P Lucious Sandford (AUS) – C Juan Rosario (SJ) – 1B Richard Shields (LA) – 2B Bobby Cox (DAL) – 3B Joseph Floores (LV) – SS Brandon Buck (PHO) – LF Roberto Gonzalez (SJ) – CF Julius Spencer (AUS) – RF Raul Cruz (AUS)

Interesting Facts – Three players, Sanfrancisco’s Jose Salazar (17), OKC’s Felix Vazquez (17) and Kansas City’s Tom Carter (16) all hit more triples on the season than Austin’s entire roster (15). Sanfrancisco star Francisco Perez hit 62 doubles during the season, setting a new league record. Las Vegas reliever Michinori Morita had been on a tear over the last three seasons, playing in 254 games and owning a 33-6 record with 6 saves (including his phenomenal 18-win 2036 season), while his 268 strikeouts were the most by a relief pitcher during that timeframe.

JayW UK · 11-21-2025, 04:16 AM

Interlude – Player Profiles

I thought we’d take a look at two recently retired players who, while they don’t possess the resumes to have anything but an outside shot at entry to the Hall of Fame, will never-the-less be remembered as club legends by fans of the franchises they spent the majority of their careers with.

Richie Rambeaux
College – N/A (High School)
Drafted – 2016 – 1ST Round - #2 Overall by Cleveland Corsairs
Current Team – None (Retired)
Previous Teams – CLE (2016-2033), BOS (2034), STL (2034-2035), WAS (2036)

Drafted second overall by Cleveland, the eighteen-year-old Rambeaux was immediately named as BNN’s #2 prospect. The first two years of his career were spent bouncing around Cleveland’s minor league system where the young Rambeaux learnt the finer points of baseball with varying degrees of success. When he finally broke through into the NABL in 2018 it appeared he had been promoted too soon (.216, 1 HR, 9 RBI in 41 games) and when he followed that up with another disappointing campaign the following year (.233, 2 HR, 11 RBI in 46 games), the inevitable questions regarding his future began to surface. The club however showed faith and traded away several established players before the 2020 campaign to open playing time for younger players including Rambeaux, the move proved fruitful as Cleveland’s young core led the team all the way to the World Series where they fell to OKC in six. Over the next five seasons Rambeaux showed steady improvement establishing himself as one of the premier infielders in the EL, culminating in an Outstanding Hitter Award in 2025. A serious shoulder injury limited him to only 69 games in 2026 but he returned the following year to play a leading role in the Corsairs run to their maiden World Championship. The club failed to build on that success and Rambeaux spent the next six years toiling away on mediocre teams that never threatened to reach the playoffs (a combined 435-537 record during those years). Prior to 2034, a now 35-year-old Rambeaux was deemed surplus to requirements and left Cleveland to join Boston, a move that quickly turned sour, a fractured finger and below par play saw him traded to St. Louis for a bevy of prospects. After an eighteen month stay in St. Louis, Rambeaux chose to join Washington for one last go-around where on 29th April he collected the 2500th hit of his career, one of the few highlights of a largely forgettable season. At the conclusion of the campaign (his nineteenth in the major leagues) Rambeaux announced his retirement. Despite the obvious decline in his play during the final few years, Rambeaux will be fondly remembered by Cleveland fans for the first sixteen years of his career, at the time of his leaving the Corsairs he was the club’s all-time leader in games played (1955), hits (2259), homeruns (375), RBI’s (1183).

Career Stats
Regular Season
G - 2283 AB - 8817 RS - 1336 H - 2533 2B - 347 3B - 42 HR - 418 RBI - 1352 BB - 712 K - 1854 SB - 150 CS - 56 AVG - .287 OBP – .345 SLG – .478 OPS – .824 OPS+ 128 WAR – 59.3
Post Season
G - 46 AB - 181 RS - 29 H - 60 2B - 13 3B - 3 HR - 10 RBI - 33 BB - 14 K - 47 SB - 4 CS - 4 AVG - .331 OBP – .383 SLG – .602 OPS – .985 OPS+ 175

Career Achievements
Outstanding Hitter Award x1 (2025)
Homerun Champion x 1 (2024)
6-time All-Star
3-time Glove Wizard
1-time World Series winner (2027)

Jamie Boden
College – N/A
Drafted – N/A - 2017 International discovery by Sanfrancisco
Current Team – None (Retired)
Previous Teams – SF (2017-2020), DEN (2020-2035), WAS (2036), SD (2036-2037), DAL (2038)

Discovered playing semi-professionally as a sixteen-year-old in the obscure Aruban league in 2017, Boden was immediately snapped up by Sanfrancisco spending the next two years in their International Complex before making his way to the USA to continue his professional career. After two largely underwhelming seasons in which he never rose above AA level nor batted above .230, Boden was shipped to Denver in a deal that netted the Gold veteran outfielder Steve Wolfe. The move proved to be the making of Boden as he quickly found his feet in Denver moving through the Wildcats minor league system before making their NABL opening day roster for 2022. He never looked back playing in 161 games and winning the WL Rookie of the Year award, Boden followed his impressive rookie season with an even better campaign as Denver won the World Series the following year. Boden continued to play well, even forming a formidable one-two punch with superstar Dixon Bodean, but despite the best efforts of the pair Denver found the postseason hard to come by, making only three appearances before Bodean moved on to Tampa Bay in search of a World Series ring. After another typically strong season in 2035 Jamie Boden called time on his stay in Denver, leaving the Wildcats as their all-time leader in every major batting category (Hits 2065, Homeruns 417 and RBI’s 1259). Washington signed him to a three-year deal but the move proved short lived, as less than six months later Boden found himself traded for the second time in his career, this time to San Diego. A serious back injury robbed him of a majority of the 2037 season and ended his time in San Diego with the Mariners trading him to Dallas for a pair of draft picks. Far from being washed up Boden (now 37) produced his best season since his penultimate year in Denver, playing in 152 games and hitting 28 homeruns, but at the end of the season with Dallas struggling and looking to re-build, Boden found himself on the outside looking in and rather than join the merry-go-round of free agency, he announced his retirement from the NABL.

Career Stats
Regular Season
G - 2419 AB - 8290 RS – 1250 H - 2324 2B - 476 3B - 19 HR - 460 RBI - 1397 BB - 956 K - 1891 SB - 4 CS - 4 AVG - .280 OBP – .363 SLG – .509 OPS – .872 OPS+ 147 WAR – 63.3
Post Season
G – 37 AB - 107 RS – 9 H - 22 2B - 3 3B - 0 HR - 2 RBI - 6 BB - 10 K - 24 SB - 0 CS - 0 AVG - .206 OBP – .280 SLG – .290 OPS – 569 OPS+ 64

Career Achievements
Rookie of the Year (2022)
6-time All-Star
2-time Glove Wizard

JayW UK · 11-24-2025, 03:55 AM

2039 Off-Season

After his team’s dismal 59-win season, Cleveland owner Edwin Colon made the move that most Corsairs fans had been hoping would happen for several years, when he fired both, longtime GM Miguel Megellas and manager J.J Beck. His choices for their replacements were met with plenty of excitement, first highly regarded first-time GM Leo Delannoy was recruited away from New York’s front office where he had spent time as both director of scouting and assistant GM, then four-time manager of the year and two-time World Series winner Pat Bennett was lured on board after leaving Chicago. The Zephyr’s decided to look to an in-house replacement for the departed Bennett, elevating bench coach Jeffrey Orr to the role of manager for the 2039 season, another understudy getting a chance as manager was former Detroit bench coach Joseph Noble who was hired as Phoenix’s new skipper. In Tampa Bay, the Hurricanes made a move straight out of left-field, hiring Blake Reese as the club’s new manager, Reese had no managerial experience but did have nearly 20 years as an NABL scouting director including stints at Boston, LA, Denver and San Jose, while on the west coast after a largely frustrating three-year run, Los Angeles parted ways with manager John Cochran, turning to former Baltimore pitching coach Kevin Carter as replacement.
In a relatively quiet off-season, Philadelphia were hit hard by the departures of catcher Mike Willis, who left to join Tampa Bay on a 4-year $76M deal, and superstar first baseman Matt Henderson who headed out west to join Sanfrancisco on a three year $48M deal, also heading to the bay area was evergreen RF Dixon Bodean who left Houston after one year. Minneapolis were another team hit hard by free agency, losing 3B Cesar Salazar to Washington (4-years @ $56M) and star pitcher Steve Gream to Philadelphia (4-years @ $70M). Defending champions Las Vegas said goodbye to veteran catcher Chris Coates, who joined Omaha on a three-year deal, 37-year-old pitcher Angel Castro who headed to Baltimore for $28M over two years and CF Bryan Dale who turned a World Series MVP award into a lucrative four-year deal with Tampa Bay. Chicago beefed up their bullpen with the addition of former Sanfrancisco closer Barton Rogers, bringing him to the Windy City for two years at a cool $10M per season, division rivals Indianapolis poached 1B Randy Harrington from OKC on a team friendly one-year pact and also Pitcher Pedro Rosario (6-years @ $94M) who joined from San Jose after failing to reach an agreement on an extension. After losing Rosario the Spartans turned their attention to Miami’s Jim Champion as a replacement, luring him on board with a 6-year $70M deal and saving over $20M in the process. Rather than lose star LF Ramon Vega for nothing at the end of the season, Denver chose to cash in on him, executing a trade with St. Louis for catcher Stan Hutchinson and starting pitcher Darrell Haney, the Reds immediately signed Vega to a lucrative 2-year $45M extension, leaving all parties happy with the transaction. After the loss of star pitcher Steve Gream to Philadelphia, Minneapolis found a replacement in the form of LA’s Julio Torres, trading five international prospects (SP Enrique Castillo, SS Armando Maldonado, SS Hector Coronado, CL Armando Lucero and SP Alfonso Quintanilla) to the Lynx for their top starter.
The 2039 draft class featured only one High School player amongst the top prospects, RF Desmond Starks, who was garnering some attention as a possible top-five pick, while also being tipped to be drafted early were several college infielders led by Mississippi State 2B Jackie Young, a quality all-round player and Southern Illinois 2B Stephon Starring, who was better offensively but not as polished as defensively, Rice shortstop David Browne and Florida 3B Nick Moseley were also expected to go high. The top pitching prospects were all college players with Vanderbilt’s Todd Morgan along with Temple’s Bobby Bruder, Buffalo star Michael Thomas and Uconn’s Joe Taylor all standing out.
Owning the first overall pick and with holes all over their roster, many people expected Austin to trade down in exchange for extra picks or prospects to help with their inevitable rebuild, in the end Austin stood pat and selected Mississippi State 2B Jackie Young. Cleveland made Rice shortstop David Browne the second overall pick before Miami landed Florida’s star 3B Nick Mosley keeping him in the sunshine state, New Orleans called the name of pitcher Todd Morgan fourth although there were rumblings that he would return to college for another year. San Diego also went with a pitcher with the fifth pick tabbing Buffalo’s Michael Thomas before Phoenix named RF Desmond Starks as their selection making him the first high school player taken in the draft. Several of the touted top picks dropped lower than expected, pitcher Bobby Bruder fell to St. Louis at #9 while fellow pitcher Joe Taylor landed in LA with the 11th pick, the biggest faller was Illinois State’s 2B Stephon Starring, a predicted top five pick, who dropped into Kansas City’s lap at #13. Although Austin stood pat with the No1 overall pick they got creative during the rest of the draft, they sent starting pitcher Adrian Knapp to Las Vegas for the Gamblers Supplemental round pick, which they used on corner fielder George Thomas. The Kings then dealt their high second round pick to Minneapolis for the Bears second and third round selections which turned into 1B Lou Nelson (2nd Round) and pitcher Martin Lee (3rd Round), the Kings third round pick was used in much the same way in a deal with Indianapolis which netted Austin the Racers third and fifth round picks which were then packaged together for Denver’s top fifty prospect RF Freddie Sherman. When all was said and done, the Kings wheeling and dealing resulted in them acquiring plenty of young prospects to help their rebuild, four of which were listed in BNN’s top 50 prospects (2B Jackie Young #9, RF Freddie Sherman #33, 1B/3B George Thomas #36 and 1B Lou Nelson #45).
According to BNN the usual suspects would once again be the front runners in the respective playoff races, in the Atlantic division both Boston and New York would do battle for the division crown, while the Central division would likely be a toss-up between Chicago and Indianapolis for the title with the other three teams not even expected to reach .500 for the season. Atlanta were favoured to defend their Southeast division crown although big spending Charlotte ($200M team salary) and Tampa Bay ($182M) would both push the Flames hard.
In the west, the Midwest division would once again be a tight battle with four of the five teams expected to challenge with only Minneapolis, after several key players left in free agency, expected to be left behind, Las Vegas were predicted to once again claim the Southwest division with Houston the only real threat to the Gamblers. San Jose were in pole position to claim the Pacific division for the sixth time in seven years while Sanfrancisco, after their off-season spending (adding stars 1B Matt Henderson and LF Dixon Bodean to an already strong offense) were hotly tipped to be their main rivals.

JayW UK · Yesterday, 04:02 AM

2039 Regular Season

Eastern League Review

Led by Brett Knight (19-11, 3.16 ERA) and Rob Penney (.312, 35 HR, 97 RBI) Boston claimed the Atlantic division title for the fourth season in a row winning 93 games, finishing four ahead of New York (89-73) who hit 195 homeruns with 1B Jerry Wright (43) and C Roberto Saldana (31) leading the way. The Senators finished the season on a hot streak (winning 12 of their last 15 games) but earlier inconsistencies cost them a chance at overhauling Boston for the division crown. Philadelphia finished the season with 76 wins their worst return since 2030, as their new look offense sans Matt Henderson and Mike Willis struggled to score consistently, Washington (70-92) failed to build on their 86-win 2038 campaign with injuries the main reason for their decline while Baltimore slumped to a 68-94 record held back by the league’s worst offense.
Chicago (98-64) with star SS David Evans (.349, 27 HR, 113 RBI) and the EL’s top pitching staff led by Eugene Fey (19-9, 3.09 ERA), Mario Chavez (17-4, 2.99 ERA) and Sueng-Jae Park (17-8, 2.61 ERA) leading the way knocked Indianapolis (94-68) off the top to claim the Central division crown, the Racers boasted the EL’s #2 scoring offense (805 runs) but suffered several key injuries during the season allowing the Zephyrs to edge ahead in the standings. St. Louis (78-84) stumbled through another disappointing season but this time could not blame injuries for their poor form, Cleveland’s new manager Pat Bennett lifted the Corsairs to a 68-94 season, turning the team over to the new guard, SS Chad Hammond (25 y/o), 1B Blake Hanson (26 y/o), CF Alex Bayley (23 y/o) and pitcher Pedro Nieves (23 y/o) with mixed results. Bringing up the rear were Detroit who ended the season 65-97 and with their first basement finish in seven years.
Atlanta followed up their excellent 2038 season with another strong campaign comfortably taking the Southeast division with a 97-65 record, Mike Hicks (.271, 24 HR, 75 RBI) and C Luis Guerra (.281, 23 HR, 73 RBI) provided most of the offense but it was their pitching that led the way (15 shutouts and the EL #1 bullpen). Trailing in their wake were big spending Charlotte (87-75) with rookie sensation 1B Haden Bowden (.328, 32 HR, 95 RBI) and RF Michael Miller (.320, 22 HR, 107 RBI) the stars of the show, and Tampa Bay (86-76) owners of the EL #1 offense, driven by LF Joe Scott (.344, 34 HR, 114 RBI), 2B Steve Blanton (.288, 35 HR, 119 RBI) and youngsters 1B Pedro Castillo (25 HR) and CF Michael Sleigh (24 HR). New Orleans ended a streak of four straight sub-70 win campaigns by winning 70 games, 1B Rick Flynn (.310, 44 HR, 107 RBI) carrying the offensive load, Miami struggled through another underwhelming season to finish 69-93.

Final Standings

Atlantic Division
Boston 93-69*
New York 89-73
Philadelphia 76-86
Washington 70-92
Baltimore 68-94

Central Division
Chicago 98-64*
Indianapolis 94-68*
St. Louis 78-84
Cleveland 68-94
Detroit 65-97

Southeast Division
Atlanta 97-65*
Charlotte 87-75
Tampa Bay 86-76
New Orleans 70-92
Miami 69-93

JayW UK · Yesterday, 04:03 AM

2039 Regular Season

Western League Review

The predicted four-way battle for the Midwest division didn’t materialise as in his fourth year on the job Michael Bradshaw became the first manager to lead Omaha to the postseason as the Braves waltzed to the division title by ten games. The Braves won 94 games smashing the previous club record of 82 set in 2036 and with a roster full of young talent (with pitcher Jacobie Harksdale, 1B Sergio Romo, SS Sixto Castro and RF Felipe Peralta all 24 or younger) their future looked bright. Of the four clubs expected to challenge for the division title only OKC finished with a winning record ending the season 84-78, Kansas City (76-86), with SS Tom Carter (.323, 5 HR, 65 RBI, 45 SB) and CF Jeff Hardy (.331, 3 HR, 43 RBI, 44 SB in just 121 games) providing the speed and LF Gary Davis (28 HR, 100 RBI) the power KC were the WL’s #2 scoring offense, their problem though was stopping the opposition from plating runs, as despite scoring 807 runs the Tornadoes conceded 828!! Both Denver and Minneapolis boasted offenses that ran hot and cold and pitching staffs that struggled to contain the opposition, resulting in identical 75-87 records to bring up the rear.
In the Southwest, Houston bounced back from their disappointing 2038 to claim their first division title since 2027 (also the last time a team other than Dallas or Las Vegas had won the division). The Stars relied heavily on their #1 pitching led by Jose Vazquez (16-7, 3.07 ERA), Wes Pierson (17-11, 3.79 ERA) and Alex Allenby (13-5, 3.70) along with star 3B Bryant Deshields (.342, 27HR, 108 RBI) to roll to a franchise record 98 wins. Las Vegas struggled to reach the heights of 2038, finishing 93-69 a full twenty-one games off their record setting pace from the previous year, Phoenix rode their powerful offense, paced by 2B Mike Brown (35 HR, 124 RBI) along with RF Adrian Ramirez (30 HR, 85 RBI) and a career year from pitcher Nick Ford (20-5, 3.05 ERA) to an 84-78 record. Dallas who despite another strong season from LF Alfonso Sosa (.296, 28 HR, 104 RBI) struggled on offense eventually finishing with a 72-90 record, while Austin, amid a season of turmoil finished 66-96 a fifteen-game improvement from the disaster that was 2038.
Sanfrancisco (90-72) and San Jose (87-75) engaged in a season long battle for the Pacific division crown with the Gold just edging the Spartans to the title by three games. Although Sanfrancisco’s big ticket off-season additions Matt Henderson and Dixon Bodean (owners of 15 Outstanding Hitter awards between them) struggled through injury hit campaigns the Gold’s offense, featuring the likes of LF Francisco Perez (.363, 18 HR, 111 RBI) CF Herminio Azurara (.303, 33 HR, 106 RBI), 3B Matt Romero (.346, 18 HR, 85 RBI) and catcher Sancho Guerra (.325, 21 HR, 81 RBI) hardly missed a beat scoring 885 runs on the season. However, it was Sanfrancisco’s less than stellar pitching (865 runs conceded) that was an issue all season long with their starting pitchers boasting a combined ERA of 5.27, the bullpen led by Mike Cooper (11-1, 3.59 ERA in 70 games) won more games (47 to 43) than the starters and were a big part of why Sanfrancisco did just enough to finish the season in top spot. San Jose and their powerful offense (198 HR) with 1B Lucio Guerrero (28 HR, 103 RBI), LF Joe Clark (36 HR, 89 RBI + 32 SB) and RF Doug Matthews (31 HR, 91 RBI) firing on all cylinders backed by a solid pitching staff led by Floyd Wilson (17-5, 2.66 ERA) and Javier Valencia (14-7, 3.90 ERA), appeared to be in the driving seat for the division crown entering September but a late season swoon saw them drop behind Sanfrancisco in the standings. San Diego and Seattle finished the season locked together on 78 wins with the Pioneers young core (LF Patrick Richardson, CF Todd Merritt and pitcher Bryan Marburg) getting ample playing time to hone their craft, whilst Los Angeles despite the best efforts of CF Kevin Anderson (.301, 27 HR, 76 RBI in just 99 games) once again flattered to deceive, limping home last with a disappointing 72-90 record.

Final Standings

Midwest Division
Omaha 94-68*
Oklahoma City 84-78
Kansas City 76-86
Denver 75-87
Minneapolis 75-87

Southwest Division
Houston 98-64*
Las Vegas 93-69*
Phoenix 84-78
Dallas 72-90
Austin 66-96

Pacific Division
Sanfrancisco 90-72*
San Jose 87-75
San Diego 78-84
Seattle 78-84
Los Angeles 72-90

11-02-2025, 05:14 AM	#183
JayW UK Minors (Double A) Join Date: May 2019 Location: Hertfordshire Posts: 197	2037 Playoffs Divisional Round In the east World Champions Boston would begin their title defence with a mouth-watering matchup with high powered Indianapolis, while playoff new boys St. Louis would face fellow 2027 expansion team Charlotte. Over in the west, favourites for the WL pennant Las Vegas would get another crack at San Jose, the team that had eliminated the Gamblers in both 2033 and ’36, while Denver, back in the playoffs again, would face wildcard team Houston and have the chance to avenge their 2025 playoff exit at their hands. Defending NABL champions Boston opened their much-anticipated series with Indianapolis on the road, aiming to avoid being the latest champions knocked out of the playoffs at the first hurdle (the previous four champions had all fallen this way). Game one didn’t go to plan as starter Greg Bailey ran into trouble early, surrendering a three-run homerun to catcher Guillermo Nodal in the second before conceding two more runs in the fourth, his night was done after just five innings with the Pilgrims in a 5-0 hole. The Racers kept up the pressure, scoring four more runs against the overwhelmed Boston bullpen as Indianapolis took game one in dominant fashion. A much-improved performance from Boston pitchers Gerald Helton, Mark Lyons and Ralf Conrad in game 2 restricted the Racers to just two runs on seven hits, but the Pilgrims hitters could get nothing going against Indianapolis pitchers Dave Lockhart and Harvey Widdowes who combined for a three-hit shutout leaving defending champs Boston on the verge of elimination. Indianapolis jumped on Boston starter Brett Knight in game three, scoring three time over the opening two frames, Knight managed to put the brakes on the Racers after their early success and with Ralf Conrad keeping Indianapolis in check once he took the mound there was still a chance for Boston to save their season, and save it they did with an eighth inning rally capped by a Lucio Rodriguez homerun. The momentum had clearly swung in Boston’s favour as the Pilgrims shot into an early lead in game four up 6-0 after two innings highlighted by Lucio Rodriguez’s first inning Grand-Slam, Boston uncharacteristically took their foot off the gas allowing Indianapolis to make a comeback narrowing the gap to 6-4 entering the ninth inning, Mike Mayfield, worked around a pair of walks to close out the game and send the series back to Indianapolis for a winner-takes-all game five. In a tight pitching duel it was Boston’s Gerald Helton that blinked first when he surrendered a go ahead solo homer to LF Marc Smith in the fifth, Boston’s veteran RF Jared Guest tied the scores with a homerun of his own in the seventh, before the hometown Racers got themselves back on top with Craig McKillop’s RBI single in the eighth off reliever Mike Mayfield. Closer Harvey Widdowes kept his cool in the ninth to retire the Pilgrims in order and secure the narrow 2-1 victory. Boston failed in their aim of avoiding elimination at the first hurdle joining Charlotte, San Jose, Tampa Bay and Dallas in making it now five years in a row the defending champions had been dumped out in the divisional round. The other eastern league divisional series was a battle of the expansion teams with Charlotte hosting St. Louis for the Reds first ever playoff game. The Express cruised to victory in game one on the back of Greg Marshall who pitched a strong seven innings (7IP, 4H, 1ER, 9K) and homeruns from 1B Andres Romero and 3B Alfonso Alvarez, the following night it was the turn of the visitors with a pair of homers from catcher Gregg Connolly and a two-run blast from LF Jesus Alarcon propelling St. Louis to a 5-2 win. With the series tied at one apiece, the city of St. Louis hosted its first ever playoff game, unfortunately for the home side things began to go awry early, a first inning error from 1B Glenn Hansen extended the frame long enough for LF Daron Murphy to blast the Express ahead with a three-run homer. After St. Louis starter Darrell Haney left the game in the fourth with two men aboard, reliever Pedro Ruiz proceeded to make things worse by walking 2B Anibal Trueba to load the bases before surrendering a Grand-Slam to 1B Andres Romero pushing Charlotte’s lead to a healthy 7-0. Although the Reds bullpen managed to restrict the Express to one run the rest of the way their offense was held at bay by the pitching of Jim Jacques and Steve Walls as Charlotte romped home 8-0. Game four was a pitching duel between Les Scott (STL) and Greg Marshall (CHA) with both men exchanging zeros for the first five innings, a sixth inning RBI single from 1B Glenn Hansen broke the tie and gave St, Louis the lead, the Reds padded that lead by adding a further run in the seventh before the visitors got on the board in the eighth on a LF Michael Miller RBI single. St. Louis called on veteran closer Kikaku Aoki for the ninth and he delivered pitching a clean inning to force a game five. The decider was a closely fought contest until the seventh inning, when Charlotte’s bats woke up battering the St. Louis relievers for six runs, including a 3B Alfonso Alvarez Grand-Slam off 21-year-old Nathan Cortez (a welcome to the playoffs moment for the youngster) as the hometeam Express eased into the ELCS with a 7-1 victory. Las Vegas and San Jose were meeting for the third time in five years with the Spartans holding a 2-0 advantage in series wins. Las Vegas sent veteran Angel Castro to the mound for game one while the Spartans countered with Pedro Rosario, both men played well, each pitching seven innings of two run ball before exiting, the Gamblers relief corps coughed up a run in the eighth before Spartans closer Dave Day took the mound for the ninth looking to close out the victory. Things started well when he struck out danger man Joseph Floores but when LF Pedro Gomez (only playing due to injuries to both Joe Clark and Doug Matthews) misplayed a seemingly easy flyball, turning what should have been an out into a two-base error, things began to go wrong. A wild pitch advanced the runner to third before a Bryan Dale sacrifice fly tied the scores, a mound visit from the pitching coach and catcher Daniel Walker failed to help as next man up Vaughan Synder launched the first ball he saw into the stands to give the Gamblers a dramatic walk-off win. The Gamblers were at it again the following night, with the scores tied at four heading into the bottom of the ninth, back-to-back doubles from LF Sloan Dickey and Porter Raines gave Las Vegas another dramatic walk-off win and a 2-0 series lead to take with them to California. A wobbly start by Franklin Smith (4.0 IP, 5H, 3ER, 4BB, 1K) put Las Vegas behind early but this time there was no coming back as Ivan Lopez combined with relievers Javier Valencia and Rick Sauer to restrict the Gamblers to just a single run, and see the Spartans home safely keeping the series alive. Game four was over as a contest by the end of the first inning, the Las Vegas lineup taking a liking to San Jose starter Pedro Rosario (0.1 IP, 6H, 6ER) and reliever Gil Nash (0.2 IP, 2ER, all 3 inherited runners scoring) as they built an 8-0 lead, Las Vegas starter Angel Castro on the other hand hardly had to work up a sweat as the Gamblers cruised to a 9-2 victory, dumping defending WL champions San Jose out of the playoffs in the process. In the twelve years since Houston had swept Denver out of the playoffs, neither team had any postseason pedigree to boast of, Denver had qualified once losing 3-1 to Las Vegas in 2031, while Houston had made the postseason twice during that time, going down 3-1 to San Jose the previous season and being swept from the playoffs by Seattle in 2027. Denver entered this series as the favourites boasting the top scoring offense in the WL and solid pitching while Houston had the #3 offense and just a middle of the road pitching staff, so a high scoring matchup was expected. As anticipated both offenses showed up early in game one, SS Hector Soto hitting a 2-run homer to give Houston the lead while LF Ramon Vega slammed a 2-run shot of his own to tie the game. Both starters struggled with finding the strike zone and with their pitch counts mounting fast, the bullpens were called upon in the sixth, Houston found the change to their liking while Denver’s offense was stymied by a combination of David Martinez, Gabriel Acevedo and Alex Allenby, Houston running out 8-4 winners to stun the home crowd. Neither starter brought their A-game the following night, and when both managers turned the game over to the bullpens in the sixth inning, amazingly the game was still tied at 1-1. That didn’t last long as Denver’s potent offense finally found its groove, plating five un-answered runs including homers from 1B Daniel Kirk and C Mack Peralta, as the Wildcats cruised home 6-1. Houston opened their two-game homestand by getting to Denver starter Caden Duncan early scoring four times over the opening two frames, Duncan however settled down to go the distance without conceding any further runs. Denver managed to chip away at the lead, eventually cutting it to one, but the Houston bullpen held firm with closer Pablo Hernandez striking out Ramon Vega with two runners aboard to end the game. The following night Houston once again jumped on the Wildcats starter, this time the unlucky victim was Valentin Morales who had surrendered homeruns to SS Hector Soto and LF Robert Harris before he had retired a single batter. Morales’ night ended after just four innings with Denver already behind 6-0 and try as they might the Wildcats couldn’t find a way back into the game, with their best chance of mounting a rally coming against reliever Sam Johnson Jr in the eighth, when they loaded the bases with no-one out only for Danny Hewes to strikeout and 3B Levi Bute to hit into an inning ending double play. Denver did finally manage to get on the board in the ninth when CF Jake Griffin blasted a solo homerun but it was nothing more than a consolation as Houston waltzed home 6-1 to take the series and book their place in the WLCS for the third time in their history. Last edited by JayW UK; 11-02-2025 at 05:30 AM.

11-02-2025, 05:22 AM	#185
JayW UK Minors (Double A) Join Date: May 2019 Location: Hertfordshire Posts: 197	2037 Playoffs World Series Representing the EL in the World Series was Indianapolis who were making their sixth appearance in the fall classic and aiming for their fourth title while the WL champions Houston had been to the World Series only once before, when they defeated Philadelphia was way back in the NABL’s inaugural season. Both teams featured offenses that could put runs on the board in bunches but it was the pitching of Indianapolis that was expected to give them the edge. It was the pitching of Indianapolis, as expected, that dominated in game 1, with Ken Kramer going the distance in the Racers 5-2 series opening victory, the following day Dave Lockhart pitched well for Indianapolis (6.2 IP, 5H, 2ER, 6K) but the Racers offense couldn’t solve Houston starter Clint Martin until it was too late (only tagging him for a solo homerun in the eighth) as the Stars tied the series with a hard fought 3-1 win. Game three in Houston began well for the visitors who used homeruns from Pancho Sousa and Luis Casteneda to build an early 5-1 lead, but a costly error by Jose Villalobos and a rare implosion by the bullpen sunk Indianapolis, as Houston took full advantage eventually running out comfortable 10-5 winners. Game 4 was the turn of the home side to build an early lead when C Marv Wilson clubbed a two-run homer in the second inning, Indianapolis tied the game with a pair of runs in the fifth only for LF Robert Harris to slug a solo homer and once again give Houston the lead. The visitors would lie down though and again tied the game on a Jose Villalobos RBI double in the seventh, neither team troubled the scorers from then until the bottom of the tenth, when with two out CF Julius Spencer drilled a walk-off RBI double to lift Houston to a 4-3 victory. Down 3-1 in the series Indianapolis were up against it for game 5, luckily for them Ken Kramer was on the mound and the wily veteran used all of his knowledge to hold Houston at bay while the Racers offense went to town on his counterpart Clint Martin plating 7 runs and chasing Martin from the game after just four innings, Houston slowed the onslaught but could not mount a comeback as they fell to a 9-4 defeat. Having survived one elimination game Indianapolis knew they had to do it all again, Game 6 turned out to be a tight back and forth battle before Indianapolis snapped a 4-4 tie in the bottom of the eighth and closer Harvey Widdowes retired Houston in order in the ninth to set up a dramatic game seven. Houston entered the winner takes all decider low on confidence having blown their 3-1 series lead while Indianapolis seemingly had everything going their way being at home and with all the momentum. Racers starter Ramon Schoof showed off his class, pitching seven shutout innings as Indianapolis built a 4-0 lead heading into the eighth, Houston threw everything they had at the Racers bullpen forcing Indianapolis to use three pitchers to get through the inning, with the lead now 4-3 and Houston in the ascendency a 3-run homerun from Jose Cintron stopped the Stars dead in their tracks and gave the hometown Racers some breathing room. Houston mounted one last rally in the ninth but ultimately fell short, and when 37-year-old Greg Gray struck out 1B Ramon Martinez to end the game and deliver Indianapolis their fourth world title, fans and players alike went wild with joy. The series had been closer than most people predicted and even the most ardent Racer fans must have been worried when they found themselves 3-1 down, but through a combination of gritty determination and clutch play the 2037 Indianapolis Racers found a way to triumph. 2037 Playoff Recap Divisional Series EL: Charlotte 3-2 St. Louis, Indianapolis 3-2 Boston WL: Houston 3-1 Denver, Las Vegas 3-1 San Jose Championship Series EL: Indianapolis 4-1 Charlotte WL: Houston 4-1 Las Vegas World Series Indianapolis 4-3 Houston Last edited by JayW UK; 11-02-2025 at 05:27 AM.

11-04-2025, 04:05 AM	#186
JayW UK Minors (Double A) Join Date: May 2019 Location: Hertfordshire Posts: 197	2037 Season Leaders and Awards EL Batting Hits 205 Jose Villalobos (IND) 200 David Evans (CHI) 200 Percy Sterrenberg (DET) Batting Avg .354 Glenn Hansen (STL) .349 Jose Villalobos (IND) .347 Pancho Sousa (IND) Homeruns 45 Jerry Wright (NY) 39 Bryant Manton (TB) 35 Eduardo Moreno (BOS) RBI 122 Jose Cintron (IND) 106 David Evans (CHI) 105 Steve Blanton (TB) Stolen Bases 30 Don Bridges (NY) 27 Marc Smith (IND) 27 Pancho Sousa (IND) EL Pitching Wins 20 Les Scott (STL) * 19 Eugene Fey (CHI) 19 McKenzie Ransford (STL) ERA 1.82 Les Scott (STL) * 2.34 Shane Olson (PHI) 2.67 Eugene Fey (CHI) Strikeouts 340 Les Scott (STL) * 298 Shane Olson (PHI) 257 McKenzie Ransford (STL) Saves 45 Steve Berg (TB) 45 Phil Hopkins (CHI) 39 Mike Mayfield (BOS) WL Batting Hits 200 Fernando Diaz (DEN) 184 Herminio Azurara (SF) 180 Jose Diaz (OKC) Batting Avg .352 Fernando Diaz (DEN) .331 Sancho Guerra (SF) .330 Danny Wheeler (LV) Homeruns 38 Herminio Azurara (SF) 38 Joseph Floores (LV) 35 Fernando Hernandez (MIN) RBI 122 Herminio Azurara (SF) 114 Joseph Floores (LV) 104 Fernando Hernandez (MIN) Stolen Bases 47 Manny Chavez (SJ) 37 Juan Gutierrez (DAL) 36 Todd Browning (SEA) WL Pitching Wins 19 Rafer MacNeil (OKC) 18 Mitch Woodroffe (LA) 17 Steve Gream (MIN) ERA 2.14 Steve Gream (MIN) 2.44 Rafer MacNeil (OKC) 2.47 Rick Sauer (SJ) Strikeouts 272 Rafer MacNeil (OKC) 218 David Lyons (OMH) 213 Adrian Knapp (AUS) Saves 49 Pablo Hernandez (HOU) 41 Philip Redmond (LV) 38 Dave Day (SJ) 2037 Season Awards Batting Champion – St. Louis 1B Glenn Hansen (.354) held off Indianapolis pair Jose Villalobos (.349) and Pancho Sousa (.347) to claim the eastern league batting title, while in the west Denver’s Fernando Diaz (.352) won the title finishing well ahead of his nearest challengers, Sanfrancisco catcher Sancho Guerra (.331) and Las Vegas RF Danny Wheeler (.330) Homerun Champion – New York 1B Jerry Wright (45) capped off an excellent season by taking home the EL award, in the west the title was shared between Sanfrancisco RF Herminio Azurara and Las Vegas 3B Joseph Floores who both slugged 38 homers on the season. Outstanding Hitter – New York’s slugging 1B Jerry Wright (.261, 45 HR, 101 RBI) was the surprise winner in the eastern league taking the award ahead of Jose Villalobos (IND) and Brandon Townsend (CHA) who were most people’s choices. In the west Las Vegas 3B Joseph Floores (.282, 38 HR, 114 RBI) won in a landslide. Outstanding Pitcher – an exceptional triple crown season from St. Louis ace Les Scott (20-6, 1.82 ERA and an NABL record 340K) won him the EL award ahead of Indianapolis star Ramon Schoof (19-4, 2.77 ERA). The western league award was won for the second consecutive year by OKC’s Rafer MacNeil (19-7, 2.44 ERA, 272K). Rookie of the Year – Atlanta’s brilliant young catcher Luis Guerra (.308, 33 HR, 96 RBI) took home the EL award by a landslide while in the west Las Vegas shortstop Joaquin Corona (.297, 6 HR, 45 RBI, 30 SB) held of challenges from young starters Bryan Marburg (SEA) and David Lyons (OMH) to take home the coveted award. Manager of the Year – Indianapolis skipper Davey Johnstone collected the award in the east for leading the Racers to their fourth world championship while Houston’s Cipriano Gonzalez picked up the WL award for leading unfancied Houston all the way to the World Series. Glove Wizard Awards EL - P Kane Conacher (BOS) - C Nicholas Tate (CHA) - 1B Pedro Escoriaza (WAS) - 2B Anibal Trueba (CHA) - 3B Percy Sterrenburg (DET) - SS Jose Mendoza (TB) - LF Rob Penney (BOS) - CF Doyle Arnold (WAS) - RF Peter Thomas (MIA) Glove Wizard Awards WL – P Franklin Smith (LV) - C Danny Lunnard (KC) - 1B Jason King (PHO) - 2B Mike Brown (PHO) - 3B Joseph Floores (LV) - SS Christian Moore (DEN) - LF Alfonso Sosa (DAL) - CF Steve McCullough (OKC) - RF Danny Wheeler (LV) Interesting Facts – Las Vegas improved upon their NABL record low for team strikeouts by reducing their 2036 total by a phenomenal 64 to set a new record with just 872 K’s on the season. Both Seattle and San Jose took advantage of the speed on their roster smashing the old record for stolen bases in a season (171), Seattle racked up 188 while San Jose swiped 178. At the other end of the spectrum Charlotte’s roster was not build for speed with the Express managing 24 stolen bases on the season. St. Louis ace Les Scott became the first player in NABL history to strike out 15+ batters three times during a single season. In just his second season in charge of Jacksonville, Juan Santos led the Dolphins to an 81-63 record and their first playoff appearance in more than a decade, a great start to his managerial career. Last edited by JayW UK; 11-04-2025 at 04:07 AM.

Yesterday, 04:03 AM	#198
JayW UK Minors (Double A) Join Date: May 2019 Location: Hertfordshire Posts: 197	2039 Regular Season Western League Review The predicted four-way battle for the Midwest division didn’t materialise as in his fourth year on the job Michael Bradshaw became the first manager to lead Omaha to the postseason as the Braves waltzed to the division title by ten games. The Braves won 94 games smashing the previous club record of 82 set in 2036 and with a roster full of young talent (with pitcher Jacobie Harksdale, 1B Sergio Romo, SS Sixto Castro and RF Felipe Peralta all 24 or younger) their future looked bright. Of the four clubs expected to challenge for the division title only OKC finished with a winning record ending the season 84-78, Kansas City (76-86), with SS Tom Carter (.323, 5 HR, 65 RBI, 45 SB) and CF Jeff Hardy (.331, 3 HR, 43 RBI, 44 SB in just 121 games) providing the speed and LF Gary Davis (28 HR, 100 RBI) the power KC were the WL’s #2 scoring offense, their problem though was stopping the opposition from plating runs, as despite scoring 807 runs the Tornadoes conceded 828!! Both Denver and Minneapolis boasted offenses that ran hot and cold and pitching staffs that struggled to contain the opposition, resulting in identical 75-87 records to bring up the rear. In the Southwest, Houston bounced back from their disappointing 2038 to claim their first division title since 2027 (also the last time a team other than Dallas or Las Vegas had won the division). The Stars relied heavily on their #1 pitching led by Jose Vazquez (16-7, 3.07 ERA), Wes Pierson (17-11, 3.79 ERA) and Alex Allenby (13-5, 3.70) along with star 3B Bryant Deshields (.342, 27HR, 108 RBI) to roll to a franchise record 98 wins. Las Vegas struggled to reach the heights of 2038, finishing 93-69 a full twenty-one games off their record setting pace from the previous year, Phoenix rode their powerful offense, paced by 2B Mike Brown (35 HR, 124 RBI) along with RF Adrian Ramirez (30 HR, 85 RBI) and a career year from pitcher Nick Ford (20-5, 3.05 ERA) to an 84-78 record. Dallas who despite another strong season from LF Alfonso Sosa (.296, 28 HR, 104 RBI) struggled on offense eventually finishing with a 72-90 record, while Austin, amid a season of turmoil finished 66-96 a fifteen-game improvement from the disaster that was 2038. Sanfrancisco (90-72) and San Jose (87-75) engaged in a season long battle for the Pacific division crown with the Gold just edging the Spartans to the title by three games. Although Sanfrancisco’s big ticket off-season additions Matt Henderson and Dixon Bodean (owners of 15 Outstanding Hitter awards between them) struggled through injury hit campaigns the Gold’s offense, featuring the likes of LF Francisco Perez (.363, 18 HR, 111 RBI) CF Herminio Azurara (.303, 33 HR, 106 RBI), 3B Matt Romero (.346, 18 HR, 85 RBI) and catcher Sancho Guerra (.325, 21 HR, 81 RBI) hardly missed a beat scoring 885 runs on the season. However, it was Sanfrancisco’s less than stellar pitching (865 runs conceded) that was an issue all season long with their starting pitchers boasting a combined ERA of 5.27, the bullpen led by Mike Cooper (11-1, 3.59 ERA in 70 games) won more games (47 to 43) than the starters and were a big part of why Sanfrancisco did just enough to finish the season in top spot. San Jose and their powerful offense (198 HR) with 1B Lucio Guerrero (28 HR, 103 RBI), LF Joe Clark (36 HR, 89 RBI + 32 SB) and RF Doug Matthews (31 HR, 91 RBI) firing on all cylinders backed by a solid pitching staff led by Floyd Wilson (17-5, 2.66 ERA) and Javier Valencia (14-7, 3.90 ERA), appeared to be in the driving seat for the division crown entering September but a late season swoon saw them drop behind Sanfrancisco in the standings. San Diego and Seattle finished the season locked together on 78 wins with the Pioneers young core (LF Patrick Richardson, CF Todd Merritt and pitcher Bryan Marburg) getting ample playing time to hone their craft, whilst Los Angeles despite the best efforts of CF Kevin Anderson (.301, 27 HR, 76 RBI in just 99 games) once again flattered to deceive, limping home last with a disappointing 72-90 record. Final Standings Midwest Division Omaha 94-68* Oklahoma City 84-78 Kansas City 76-86 Denver 75-87 Minneapolis 75-87 Southwest Division Houston 98-64* Las Vegas 93-69* Phoenix 84-78 Dallas 72-90 Austin 66-96 Pacific Division Sanfrancisco 90-72* San Jose 87-75 San Diego 78-84 Seattle 78-84 Los Angeles 72-90 Last edited by JayW UK; Yesterday at 04:05 AM.

10-31-2025, 04:20 AM	#181
JayW UK Minors (Double A) Join Date: May 2019 Location: Hertfordshire Posts: 197	2037 Season Notes Pre-season – San Diego’s young outfielder Greg Jackson (the #1 overall draft pick from 2036) was seriously injured in a car crash, leaving him in a coma fighting for his life, tragically he was only driving to the Clubs spring training camp after being given a late invite due to injuries to several other players. April 4th – in his first start of the season Miami’s Hughton Hall hurled the season’s first NO-HITTER as the Everglades held off Cleveland 3-0. April 6th – Austin’s veteran closer Luis Torres collected his 400th career save. April 7th – Houston’s 24-year-old pitcher Jose Vazquez suffered a fractured elbow against Kansas City and was lost for the year, a tough pill to swallow for the young man who had only just been promoted to the rotation. April 8th – in a tragic turn of events, after hanging on for almost two weeks San Diego’s Greg Jackson lost his battle for life, leaving everyone connected to the franchise stunned and the wider baseball community mourning the sad loss of such a young talent. April 10th – Minneapolis starter Marc Fort joined the 3000K club, striking out OKC’s Xavier Cisneros to reach the milestone. April 19th – Tampa Bay star Bryant Manton played a big part in the Hurricanes 12-7 victory over Philadelphia, hitting for the CYCLE and collecting 7-RBI’s May 20th – Sanfrancisco’s star 3B Matt Romero ruptured his Achilles tendon ending his season after just 16 games. May 27th – 37-year-old Indianapolis reliever Greg Gray, became only the second player to reach 500 career saves, joining Min-Jae Choi in the exclusive club. May 28th – St. Louis’ off-season trade acquisition, closer Uram Park suffered torn triceps ruling him out until the end of September at the earliest. June 3rd – Seattle 3B David Henry hit for the CYCLE and drove in four runs, but it was all for nothing as the Pioneers dropped a heartbreaker to Houston. June 4th – Tampa Bay 1B Jesus Agguire (3-for-3, 2 HR, 8-RBI) played his part in helping the Hurricanes hammer Chicago to the tune of 18-2. June 8th – veteran second baseman Jack Underwood played an instrumental role in Denver’s come-from-behind win against Kansas City going 5-for-5 with 5-RBI’s, to make his day all-the-more sweeter, his walk-off 2-RBI double was hit number 2500 of his illustrious career. June 14th – Minneapolis catcher Tom Walsh almost single handedly carried the Bears to victory over Houston, he collected 6 RBI’s on 4 hits, two of which were homeruns, including the game winning 3-run walk-off blast in the bottom of the 11th. June 15th – St. Louis pitcher Les Scott’s highly rated stuff was on full display against New Orleans as he struck out 15 Blues in an 8-4 Reds victory. June 20th – Dixon Bodean drilled his 700th career homerun in Baltimore’s 5-3 victory over Washington. June 21st - Washington’s Lucio Martinez scored his 1000th career run as the Generals again fell to Baltimore. June 29th – Las Vegas 3B Joseph Floores hit for the CYCLE including a go-ahead two-run homer in the ninth, as the Gamblers scraped home 6-4 against Phoenix. July 1st – St. Louis starter Les Scott flat out dominated Detroit, striking out 16 in eight innings of work as the Reds rolled to a 10-3 victory. July 2nd – Charlotte chose to cash in on veteran SS Jamie Henson, (who’s contract was up at season’s end) and bolster their infield in the process by trading Henson to Sanfrancisco for 1B Andres Romero. July 8th – Miami’s RF Peter Thomas came up big for the Everglades (4-for-4, 3 HR, 5 RBI’s) as they held off in-state rivals Tampa Bay 8-7. July 10th – Denver’s pitching rotation suffered a blow when Dave Cramer suffered a torn hamstring ruling him out until October. July 11th –Seattle 3B Julio Ramirez launched the 300th homerun of his career in the Pioneers 4-2 win over Chicago. July 14th – 35-year-old Miami 1B Broderick Hill rolled back the years when he drilled a walk-off RBI double to lift the Everglades to a 6-5 victory over San Jose. July 15th – Broderick Hill was at it again the following day, this time going one better when he smashed a walk-off 2-run homer to once again help Miami defeat San Jose. July 22nd – LA’s Ike Singleton took 93 pitches to see off Las Vegas, surrendering 3 walks on the way to NO-HITTING the Gamblers on a night when the Lynx offense was held to just three hits, one of them being a homerun which proved to be just enough to carry LA to the win. August 6th – in the game between Kansas City and San Jose all the action took place in a crazy ninth inning. With the game tied 0-0 after eight frames the visiting Tornadoes took a two-run lead in the top of the ninth, only for the hometown Spartans to rally and tie the game before going on to win on a walk-off Grand-Slam blasted by RF Doug Matthews. August 7th – Philadelphia star Matt Henderson lifted the Independence to victory over division Rivals New York by hitting the 400th homerun of his illustrious career. August 13th – San Diego’s pitchers couldn’t control Minneapolis CF Fernando Hernandez (3-for-5, 2 HR, 8-RBI’s) as he accounted for all but one of the Bears runs in their 9-2 victory. August 16th – Atlanta’s Alex Blanca played a pivotal role in the Flames 14-7 victory over Minneapolis, going 3-for-4, with 2 HR (one Grand-Slam) and collecting 8-RBI’s. August 22nd – St. Louis snuck home 8-7 against Cleveland almost blowing an 8-1 ninth inning lead in the process, the Reds were forced to use five pitchers to escape the inning, the fifth of which was Kikaku Aoki who finally ended the game and collected the 300th save of his career in doing so. August 25th – Philadelphia ace Shane Olson shut the Austin offense down, surrendering just a single hit and allowing just one walk while striking out 15 through eight dominant frames, but the Kings had the last word taking the game to extras and winning in the 12th. August 26th – Denver star 2B Jack Underwood was placed on the DL ending his season, he was shut down on doctor’s orders after struggling for most of the year with Planter Fasciitis. September 2nd – Omaha SS Angel Lopez hit for the CYCLE, collecting 2 RBI’s along the way, his efforts were not enough for the Braves to beat Houston though as they fell 5-3. September 6th – RF Gustavo Reyes drilled a go-ahead solo homerun to complete the CYCLE as Chicago downed Cleveland 5-4. September 17th – LA second baseman Carl Scott was instrumental in leading the Lynx to a 9-6 victory over San Jose, collecting six hits including four for extra bases and driving in four of LA’s nine runs. While in Atlanta, the Flames had trouble all day putting the ball in play against St. Louis pitcher Les Scott, he collected 15 strikeouts through seven innings of work in an 8-2 Reds victory, it was the third time on the season Scott had struck out at least 15 batters. September 18th – San Jose LF Joe Clark’s season ended when he tore his hamstring in his club’s loss to Seattle. Also, on the same day Boston received some unwelcome injury news with pitcher Brandon Stanton being ruled out for the season. September 21st – New York RF Roy Higgins played a huge part in the Senators victory over rivals Boston, Higgins’ big day included hitting a pair of homeruns, one of which was a Grand-Slam, and driving in 8!! The Senators 13-9 victory cut Boston’s lead at the top of the Atlantic division to just 2 games with nine games left to play. September 23rd – Boston lost another pitcher to injury, this time Kane Conacher who was forced to the DL with elbow inflammation ending his season. September 25th – Denver’s postseason plans were thrown into disarray with the news that two players were heading to the DL effectively ending their seasons, 2B Eric Graves (Jack Underwood’s replacement) was out with a sprained ankle and CF Fernando Diaz suffered broken ribs. September 26th – Charlotte’s Greg Marshall had a field day against New Orleans striking out 16 as the Express routed the Blues 17-2. September 27th – even though the Generals fell to another frustrating loss, Washington LF Lucio Martinez had reason to celebrate, he collected three hits the second of which was the 2000th of his career. September 28th – Charlotte 2B Anibal Trueba scored the 1000th run of his career when Daron Murphy drove him home to give the Express a hard fought 4-3 victory over Miami. September 29th – another of San Jose’s starting outfielders went to the DL with a season ending injury, this time RF Doug Matthews was the unlucky man, suffering a strained Oblique muscle. September 30th – on the last day of the season Dallas LF Alfonso Sosa collected his 1000th career RBI as the Mustangs ended their disappointing season on a high, thumping Austin 15-4. October 3rd – after rushing himself back from injury for the postseason, St. Louis closer Uram Park’s first career playoff appearance lasted only 4 pitches before he exited with a shoulder injury.

11-02-2025, 05:14 AM	#182
JayW UK Minors (Double A) Join Date: May 2019 Location: Hertfordshire Posts: 197	2037 Playoffs Divisional Round In the east World Champions Boston would begin their title defence with a mouth-watering matchup with high powered Indianapolis, while playoff new boys St. Louis would face fellow 2027 expansion team Charlotte. Over in the west, favourites for the WL pennant Las Vegas would get another crack at San Jose, the team that had eliminated the Gamblers in both 2033 and ’36, while Denver, back in the playoffs again, would face wildcard team Houston and have the chance to avenge their 2025 playoff exit at their hands. Defending NABL champions Boston opened their much-anticipated series with Indianapolis on the road, aiming to avoid being the latest champions knocked out of the playoffs at the first hurdle (the previous four champions had all fallen this way). Game one didn’t go to plan as starter Greg Bailey ran into trouble early, surrendering a three-run homerun to catcher Guillermo Nodal in the second before conceding two more runs in the fourth, his night was done after just five innings with the Pilgrims in a 5-0 hole. The Racers kept up the pressure, scoring four more runs against the overwhelmed Boston bullpen as Indianapolis took game one in dominant fashion. A much-improved performance from Boston pitchers Gerald Helton, Mark Lyons and Ralf Conrad in game 2 restricted the Racers to just two runs on seven hits, but the Pilgrims hitters could get nothing going against Indianapolis pitchers Dave Lockhart and Harvey Widdowes who combined for a three-hit shutout leaving defending champs Boston on the verge of elimination. Indianapolis jumped on Boston starter Brett Knight in game three, scoring three time over the opening two frames, Knight managed to put the brakes on the Racers after their early success and with Ralf Conrad keeping Indianapolis in check once he took the mound there was still a chance for Boston to save their season, and save it they did with an eighth inning rally capped by a Lucio Rodriguez homerun. The momentum had clearly swung in Boston’s favour as the Pilgrims shot into an early lead in game four up 6-0 after two innings highlighted by Lucio Rodriguez’s first inning Grand-Slam, Boston uncharacteristically took their foot off the gas allowing Indianapolis to make a comeback narrowing the gap to 6-4 entering the ninth inning, Mike Mayfield, worked around a pair of walks to close out the game and send the series back to Indianapolis for a winner-takes-all game five. In a tight pitching duel it was Boston’s Gerald Helton that blinked first when he surrendered a go ahead solo homer to LF Marc Smith in the fifth, Boston’s veteran RF Jared Guest tied the scores with a homerun of his own in the seventh, before the hometown Racers got themselves back on top with Craig McKillop’s RBI single in the eighth off reliever Mike Mayfield. Closer Harvey Widdowes kept his cool in the ninth to retire the Pilgrims in order and secure the narrow 2-1 victory. Boston failed in their aim of avoiding elimination at the first hurdle joining Charlotte, San Jose, Tampa Bay and Dallas in making it now five years in a row the defending champions had been dumped out in the divisional round. The other eastern league divisional series was a battle of the expansion teams with Charlotte hosting St. Louis for the Reds first ever playoff game. The Express cruised to victory in game one on the back of Greg Marshall who pitched a strong seven innings (7IP, 4H, 1ER, 9K) and homeruns from 1B Andres Romero and 3B Alfonso Alvarez, the following night it was the turn of the visitors with a pair of homers from catcher Gregg Connolly and a two-run blast from LF Jesus Alarcon propelling St. Louis to a 5-2 win. With the series tied at one apiece, the city of St. Louis hosted its first ever playoff game, unfortunately for the home side things began to go awry early, a first inning error from 1B Glenn Hansen extended the frame long enough for LF Daron Murphy to blast the Express ahead with a three-run homer. After St. Louis starter Darrell Haney left the game in the fourth with two men aboard, reliever Pedro Ruiz proceeded to make things worse by walking 2B Anibal Trueba to load the bases before surrendering a Grand-Slam to 1B Andres Romero pushing Charlotte’s lead to a healthy 7-0. Although the Reds bullpen managed to restrict the Express to one run the rest of the way their offense was held at bay by the pitching of Jim Jacques and Steve Walls as Charlotte romped home 8-0. Game four was a pitching duel between Les Scott (STL) and Greg Marshall (CHA) with both men exchanging zeros for the first five innings, a sixth inning RBI single from 1B Glenn Hansen broke the tie and gave St, Louis the lead, the Reds padded that lead by adding a further run in the seventh before the visitors got on the board in the eighth on a LF Michael Miller RBI single. St. Louis called on veteran closer Kikaku Aoki for the ninth and he delivered pitching a clean inning to force a game five. The decider was a closely fought contest until the seventh inning, when Charlotte’s bats woke up battering the St. Louis relievers for six runs, including a 3B Alfonso Alvarez Grand-Slam off 21-year-old Nathan Cortez (a welcome to the playoffs moment for the youngster) as the hometeam Express eased into the ELCS with a 7-1 victory. Las Vegas and San Jose were meeting for the third time in five years with the Spartans holding a 2-0 advantage in series wins. Las Vegas sent veteran Angel Castro to the mound for game one while the Spartans countered with Pedro Rosario, both men played well, each pitching seven innings of two run ball before exiting, the Gamblers relief corps coughed up a run in the eighth before Spartans closer Dave Day took the mound for the ninth looking to close out the victory. Things started well when he struck out danger man Joseph Floores but when LF Pedro Gomez (only playing due to injuries to both Joe Clark and Doug Matthews) misplayed a seemingly easy flyball, turning what should have been an out into a two-base error, things began to go wrong. A wild pitch advanced the runner to third before a Bryan Dale sacrifice fly tied the scores, a mound visit from the pitching coach and catcher Daniel Walker failed to help as next man up Vaughan Synder launched the first ball he saw into the stands to give the Gamblers a dramatic walk-off win. The Gamblers were at it again the following night, with the scores tied at four heading into the bottom of the ninth, back-to-back doubles from LF Sloan Dickey and Porter Raines gave Las Vegas another dramatic walk-off win and a 2-0 series lead to take with them to California. A wobbly start by Franklin Smith (4.0 IP, 5H, 3ER, 4BB, 1K) put Las Vegas behind early but this time there was no coming back as Ivan Lopez combined with relievers Javier Valencia and Rick Sauer to restrict the Gamblers to just a single run, and see the Spartans home safely keeping the series alive. Game four was over as a contest by the end of the first inning, the Las Vegas lineup taking a liking to San Jose starter Pedro Rosario (0.1 IP, 6H, 6ER) and reliever Gil Nash (0.2 IP, 2ER, all 3 inherited runners scoring) as they built an 8-0 lead, Las Vegas starter Angel Castro on the other hand hardly had to work up a sweat as the Gamblers cruised to a 9-2 victory, dumping defending WL champions San Jose out of the playoffs in the process. In the twelve years since Houston had swept Denver out of the playoffs, neither team had any postseason pedigree to boast of, Denver had qualified once losing 3-1 to Las Vegas in 2031, while Houston had made the postseason twice during that time, going down 3-1 to San Jose the previous season and being swept from the playoffs by Seattle in 2027. Denver entered this series as the favourites boasting the top scoring offense in the WL and solid pitching while Houston had the #3 offense and just a middle of the road pitching staff, so a high scoring matchup was expected. As anticipated both offenses showed up early in game one, SS Hector Soto hitting a 2-run homer to give Houston the lead while LF Ramon Vega slammed a 2-run shot of his own to tie the game. Both starters struggled with finding the strike zone and with their pitch counts mounting fast, the bullpens were called upon in the sixth, Houston found the change to their liking while Denver’s offense was stymied by a combination of David Martinez, Gabriel Acevedo and Alex Allenby, Houston running out 8-4 winners to stun the home crowd. Neither starter brought their A-game the following night, and when both managers turned the game over to the bullpens in the sixth inning, amazingly the game was still tied at 1-1. That didn’t last long as Denver’s potent offense finally found its groove, plating five un-answered runs including homers from 1B Daniel Kirk and C Mack Peralta, as the Wildcats cruised home 6-1. Houston opened their two-game homestand by getting to Denver starter Caden Duncan early scoring four times over the opening two frames, Duncan however settled down to go the distance without conceding any further runs. Denver managed to chip away at the lead, eventually cutting it to one, but the Houston bullpen held firm with closer Pablo Hernandez striking out Ramon Vega with two runners aboard to end the game. The following night Houston once again jumped on the Wildcats starter, this time the unlucky victim was Valentin Morales who had surrendered homeruns to SS Hector Soto and LF Robert Harris before he had retired a single batter. Morales’ night ended after just four innings with Denver already behind 6-0 and try as they might the Wildcats couldn’t find a way back into the game, with their best chance of mounting a rally coming against reliever Sam Johnson Jr in the eighth, when they loaded the bases with no-one out only for Danny Hewes to strikeout and 3B Levi Bute to hit into an inning ending double play. Denver did finally manage to get on the board in the ninth when CF Jake Griffin blasted a solo homerun but it was nothing more than a consolation as Houston waltzed home 6-1 to take the series and book their place in the WLCS for the third time in their history.

11-02-2025, 05:21 AM	#184
JayW UK Minors (Double A) Join Date: May 2019 Location: Hertfordshire Posts: 197	2037 Playoffs Championship Round The eastern league Pennant Series saw Indianapolis making their ninth ELCS appearance and looking to reach a record sixth World Series, face off against Charlotte who were aiming to make the Fall Classic for the second time in three years. Indianapolis with the homefield advantage were seen as favourites but the early going in game one went the way of the visitors, as Charlotte paced by Daron Murphy (1HR, 4 RBI) and Brandon Townsend (4 runs scored) built a 7-0 lead, once their offense woke up Indianapolis stormed back into the game, cutting the lead to two but Charlotte’s Jorge Flores and Rich Sutton held firm, the latter striking out Ivan Santana with two men aboard to secure the win and stun the favoured Racers. Game two started in much the same way for Charlotte as a first inning homer from 3B Alfonso Alvarez gave them an early 3-0 lead, this time Indianapolis began their comeback much earlier with Jose Cintron cutting the lead to one with a 2-run homer in the third and Marc Smith clubbing a solo effort in the sixth to tie the game. With pitcher Ken Kramer shutting Charlotte down after their early outburst Indianapolis completed the comeback when veteran Jose Cintron clubbed a solo homerun in the bottom of the eighth and closer Harvey Widdowes slammed the door in the ninth, giving the Racers a hard-fought win and sending the series on to North Carolina all square. Homefield advantage did not help Charlotte in game three as the Express made five errors leading to four unearned runs on the way to dropping the game 8-3 to the Racers, but it wasn’t all good news for Indianapolis as they lost star outfielder Marc Smith to injury, a ruptured Achilles ending his season. A big game from 21-year-old CF Luis Garza (2 doubles, 4RBI) wasn’t enough to lift Charlotte to victory the following night as the Racers offense erupted for 11 runs, eight of them against an overworked bullpen, leaving Indianapolis on the verge of their record sixth appearance in the World Series. Both starters, Ramon Schoof (IND) and Jim Jacques (CHA) were excellent in game five, each surrendering just a single run through the first six frames, the seventh though proved to be an inning to far for Jacques as he surrendered the go ahead run and left two men on base for the bullpen to clean up. The mess was to be too much for Charlotte’s beleaguered relief corps as Indianapolis plated four more runs to cruise to a comfortable 6-2 win and book their place in the World Series. In the first ever postseason meeting between the teams the WLCS saw Las Vegas, with their strong pitching and patient batters (owners of an NABL record low 872 strikeouts during the regular season) take on division rivals and wildcard entry Houston with the WL #3 scoring offense. Las Vegas starter Holden Willis was not at his best in game one (5.1 IP, 11H, 5ER, 3BB, 5K) but he didn’t need to be as, led by 1B Ed Matthews and his record setting day (4-5, 2 HR, one a Grand-Slam and 7 RBI’s), the Gamblers offense pummeled Houston, waltzing to an all too easy 13-5 win. The following evening saw a much better performance from Houston but they were still behind 4-3 heading into the ninth inning where an uncharacteristically sloppy outing from Gamblers closer Philip Redmond and some clutch hitting from Hector Soto and Bryant Deshields turned the game on its head and saw Houston steal the game 5-4. Back in Houston for game three and Las Vegas struggled to get going from the off falling into a 6-1 hole before rallying late against the Stars bullpen, the Gamblers loaded the bases in the top of the ninth and appeared to be heading for an improbable comeback when Joseph Floores launched what looked to be a homerun, only for RF Wolfgang Worns to rob him of a Grand-Slam with one of his trademark defensive plays. Las Vegas jumped all over Houston starter Clint Martin early in game four, plating six runs (including a Grand-Slam from Vaughan Snyder) by the end of the fourth inning, Houston chipped away at the lead but still trailed by two entering the ninth. Philip Redmond got the call and once again struggled, surrendering a solo homerun to Michael Hoover and walking two of the next three batters he faced, star shortstop Hector Soto came through with another clutch hit for Houston with a crisply hit 2-RBI walk-off single to snatch victory and leave Houston one win away from the World Series. With their backs against the wall Las Vegas turned to Holden Willis to save their season and although Willis produced a solid pitching display (6 IP, 6H, 2ER, 6K) he received no run support as Houston pitcher Wes Pierson shut down the Gamblers offense, both teams traded runs once the bullpens got involved but the Gamblers could not close the gap and slipped quietly out of the playoffs, losing in the WLCS for the second consecutive year.

11-06-2025, 03:57 AM	#187
JayW UK Minors (Double A) Join Date: May 2019 Location: Hertfordshire Posts: 197	2038 Off-Season After the 2037 player awards were handed out and before the NABL winter meetings signaled the start of the 2038 league year, the NABL Hall of Fame opened its doors to its newest inductee and as expected legendary pitcher Vince Little was the man. After a career spanning 19-years in which he played for five teams including stops in Atlanta, Tampa Bay and New York, Little retired in 2032 and left the game as the NABL’s all-time leader in wins, complete games and shutouts, he also won four Outstanding Pitcher awards along with the 2018 World Series with Atlanta, with Little’s enshrinement, the exclusive club grew by one to now number six ex-players. The 2038 league year kicked off with the league’s winter meetings and the announcement that active rosters would expand to 26 players, among the proposals discussed but ultimately shelved was the use of a Designated Hitter, it was the second time the DH rule proposal had been tabled and this time, just like the first, the owners had voted against it. While the winter meetings had been in session Las Vegas manager Luis Martinez had quietly announced his retirement from the game with the team moving quickly to find his replacement, Bruce Weaver from New Orleans was the man identified and after short discussions with the Blues, Weaver was released from his contract and duly became the seventh manager of the Las Vegas Gamblers. In Atlanta patience ran out for manager Jim Scheid as the Flames called time on his run with the team, with the future looking brighter with several young stars in the making, the Atlanta job appeared to be one of the more sought-after positions available. Another Southeast division team parting ways with their manager was Charlotte, who despite a run to the ELCS moved on from skipper Allan Fullerton hiring former Philadelphia pitching coach Judd Murray as his replacement. New Orleans became the third Southeast division team to hire a new skipper for the upcoming season when Rob Nava was named as their new manager, Nava was poached from Minneapolis where he had spent the last decade cutting his teeth as their hitting coach. OKC and incumbent manager Roberto Rodriguez couldn’t agree on a new contract and so when negotiations hit an impasse, Rodriguez looked for other opportunities, eventually landing the Atlanta job leaving the Outlaws scrambling to fill their managerial vacancy, and in a curious turn of events they chose former Atlanta man Jim Scheid to fill the void. Cleveland owner Edwin Colon was nothing if not a patient man, but with his team mired in financial trouble with poor performance on the field and dwindling crowds off it, he made his feelings known, as both long serving GM Miguel Megallas and manager J.J Beck were served notice that if things didn’t improve then changes would be made. On the back of their playoff run Denver got busy in Free Agency, bringing in Boston’s veteran shortstop Mario Cristo on a 4-year $80M deal, Phoenix LF John Binet for $94M over five years and persuading star outfielder Ramon Vega to commit to a new 2-year $42M deal. To balance the books the Wildcats had to let several key performers go, 2B Jack Underwood departed for Boston and a $32M two-year deal, star closer Josh Renshaw left for World Champions Indianapolis, signing on the dotted line for three years and $43M (a record contract for a relief pitcher) and pitcher Caden Duncan joined Tampa Bay for three years. Baltimore said goodbye to legend Dixon Bodean who headed to WL champions Houston, signing a one-year $19.4M deal to chase another ring, the Bulls also lost pitcher Octavio Cortal who moved on to Charlotte for a healthy $18M a year, to replace Cortal Baltimore managed to coax Cristaobal Chapa out of Dallas, landing him on a very reasonable 2-year $35M deal. The biggest deal by far featured former Los Angeles pitcher Mitch Woodroffe, who signed a monster 6-year $145M deal with St. Louis where he would team up with McKenzie Ransford, Les Scott and Darrell Haney giving the Reds the most dominant pitching rotation in the NABL. After leaving Indianapolis with his second championship ring veteran closer Greg Gray, soon to turn 38, found himself a new home signing a two-year deal with Charlotte to provide veteran leadership to their bullpen, another team chasing a veteran presence was Seattle, who lured former Sanfrancisco 1B Andres Romero away from Charlotte on a four-year $44M deal. Looking for a team to take on the final year of 1B Jamie Boden’s bloated contract, San Diego found a willing partner in the form of Dallas who sent two mid-round draft picks (8th and 12th) to the Mariners for Boden who, having missed all but 20 games in 2037 with a chronic back issue, was nearing full fitness and ready to play but found himself surplus to requirements in San Diego. Where the previous season’s high school draft class had been underwhelming the 2038 edition was anything but, with no fewer than six players, outfielders Keith Brammer, Jerry Belper, Hamilton Dunbar and Brandon Spence along with pitchers Edward Fisher and Ray Phillips all garnering interest from teams picking in the top ten. However just as in 2037 the cream of the crop was the best college talent available, led by Texas A&M pitcher Dave Lee with a mix of pitches and control that marked him out as a future ace, catcher Oliver McKenzie, who’s work behind the dish was already NABL ready even if his swing wasn’t and with Alabama’s LF Jonah Covington and UNC’s CF Colton Miller both highly regarded in scouting circles, the top of the 2038 draft was looking particularly strong. On draft night it was not a surprise when San Diego chose a pitcher first overall, their choice of player was what left many observers scratching their heads, rather than taking Texas A&M’s Dave Lee (the most polished prospect available) the Mariners instead called the name of high school prospect Edward fisher. Cleveland decided to pass on Lee as well, taking Alabama LF Jonah Covington second, New Orleans also decided against drafting Lee, picking LF Keith Brammer instead, in fact the next five franchises all passed on Lee as well, #4 Austin (CF Colton Miller), #5 Cleveland (CF Hamilton Dunbar), #6 Phoenix (RF Brandon Spence), #7 Dallas (P Ray Phillips) and #8 Washington (C Oliver McKenzie) before Atlanta finally called Lee’s name with the ninth pick. The only other prospect touted as a top ten pick to slide further than Lee was Jerry Belper who dropped to #14 where Minneapolis ended his fall. With spring training complete BNN released their predictions for the upcoming season. The Atlantic division would be a two-horse race between Boston and New York with Washington expected to push for the EL Wildcard spot, the Central division was predicted to see defending champions Indianapolis do battle with St. Louis, owners of the #1 ranked pitching staff in the NABL, Chicago were a difficult team to define with some pundits having them winning the division whilst others had them way off the pace. With the seats under Cleveland GM Miguel Megallas and manager J.J Beck red hot, Cleveland needed to improve drastically but most prediction models had them once again in the running for the number one overall draft pick. The Southeast division was expected to be a close three-way battle between Charlotte, who could boast the most talented roster in the division but had the inexperienced first-time manager Judd Murray in charge, Tampa Bay who had returned most of the key performers from 2037 and up-and-coming Atlanta, who were expecting big things from new manager Roberto Rodriguez and their young talented roster. Denver’s wheeling and dealing in the off-season had them as early favourites to repeat as Midwest division champs although both Oklahoma City and Minneapolis would have something to say about that, Kansas City and Omaha were predicted to have winning seasons making the Midwest the division to watch. Las Vegas and Houston would fight it out for the Southwest crown with none of the other three teams expected to break the 70-win barrier while the Pacific division would see Seattle join San Jose, Sanfrancisco and Los Angeles in a four-way fight for the title with San Jose the team being tipped to emerge victorious.

11-10-2025, 03:57 AM	#188
JayW UK Minors (Double A) Join Date: May 2019 Location: Hertfordshire Posts: 197	2038 Regular Season Eastern League Review Boston (91-71) fused youth, LF Rob Penney (24 y/o) and CF Weldon Render (25 y/o) with experience Jared Guest (34 y/o) and 2B Jack Underwood (40 y/o) to create the league’s most potent offense (207 HR’s) on their way to their third consecutive Atlantic division title. New York failed to take advantage of the EL’s best pitching staff as their offense, with the exception of 1B Jerry Wright (.284, 43 HR, 104 RBI) underperformed, leaving the Senators to settle for the runners-up spot five games back, Washington also boasted one of the better EL pitching staffs but much like New York their offense underwhelmed (catcher Aaron Harris, 39 HR’s and 97 RBI’s the only real threat) as the Generals finished third with an 86-76 record (manager Dave Wildridge performing miracles having overseen a 25-win improvement after his first two years in charge). Even with strong seasons from 1B Matt Henderson (.335, 29 HR, 87 RBI) and pitchers Shane Olson (15-10, 2.40 ERA) and David Adams (17-8, 3.74 ERA), Philadelphia could only finish fourth with an 83-79 record, whilst bringing up the rear were Baltimore (80-82) who’s wait for a first winning season in franchise history continued. In the Central division, Indianapolis, with LF Jose Cintron (.271, 38 HR, 112 RBI), 3B Jose Villalobos (.341, 10 HR, 90 RBI) and P Ramon Schoof (18-8, 3.30 ERA) firing on all cylinders, and a lockdown bullpen headed by new recruit Josh Renshaw (12-6, 41 SV, 1.85 ERA in 74 games) and Harvey Widdowes (5-2, 4 SV, 1.47 ERA in 86 games) took the division title with an NABL best 104-58 record while a resurgent Chicago, buoyed by excellent seasons from 2B David Evans (.362, 24 HR, 109 RBI) and pitcher Seung-Jae Park (22-6, 2.78 ERA) pushed the Racers all the way, eventually finishing with a franchise best 100-62 finish. Detroit and St. Louis ended the season tied with identical 71-91 records with both teams fielding below average offenses but where in St. Louis it was injuries that caused their pitching staff to struggle, in Detroit, plain old lack of talent created their problems (David Elder 9-13, 3.27 ERA by far the most impressive pitcher on their roster). Once again in the division basement were Cleveland, as infighting and feuding left the Corsairs hopelessly adrift at the foot of the standings with only 59 wins and resulted in wholesale front office and managerial changes at seasons end. The Southeast division belonged to Atlanta who cruised to a 98-64 record, with Dillon Furr (17-8, 3.73 ERA) and Benton Hartman (13-6, 3.35 ERA) topping their rotation and with 24-year-old catcher Luis Guerra (.290, 27 HR, 103) leading the offense, the Flames triumphantly ended their 15-year wait for a return to the postseason while Tampa Bay, paced by LF Joe Scott (.315, 33 HR, 95 RBI) and RF Bryant Manton (27 HR, 84 RBI) never truly threatened to catch Atlanta, eventually finishing well off the pace with an 86-76 record. Judd Murray’s first season in Charlotte was not a success as even though Charlotte’s offense, featuring the likes of LF Daron Murphy (.292, 35 HR, 85 RBI) and RF Michael Miller .333, 22 HR, 70 RBI) scored plenty of runs their pitching was abysmal, leading to the Express finishing a disappointing 79-83 and ending their three-year run as division champs. New Orleans (63-99) finished fourth and had their own problems with pitching (a 5.02 team ERA the worst in the NABL) but were saved from a fifth consecutive bottom of the division finish by Miami (62-100) who endured their worst campaign for twelve years. Final Standings Atlantic Division Boston 91-71* New York 86-76 Washington 86-76 Philadelphia 83-79 Baltimore 80-82 Central Division Indianapolis 104-58* Chicago 100-62* Detroit 71-91 St. Louis 71-91 Cleveland 59-103 Southeast Division Atlanta 98-64* Tampa Bay 86-76 Charlotte 79-83 New Orleans 63-99 Miami 62-100

11-10-2025, 03:59 AM	#189
JayW UK Minors (Double A) Join Date: May 2019 Location: Hertfordshire Posts: 197	2038 Regular Season Western League Review Over in the west, Oklahoma City (93-69), with Rafer MacNeil (19-6, 2.76 ERA) once again leading a strong rotation and an offense built on Power, Chance Merritt (31 HR’s), 1B Randy Harrington (28 HR’s) and 3B Xavier Cisneros (26 HR’s) and Speed 2B Jose Diaz (43 SB’s) the Outlaws unseated Denver and returned to the summit of the Midwest division for the sixth time in seven years. Despite their off-season spending, Denver failed to build on their successful 2037 campaign slipping back to finish second six games back from OKC while Minneapolis (86-76) ended up one game further back in the standings. The Bears inconsistency cost them a chance to challenge OKC for the division as their offense, led by 1B Fernando Hernandez (.276, 35 HR, 103 RBI), RF Glenn McGhee (.318, 30 HR, 103 RBI) and C Tom Walsh (.288, 27 HR, 82 RBI) scored in bunches but despite strong seasons from Steve Gream (17-11, 2.92 ERA) and Rick West (16-7, 3.49 ERA) their pitchers largely underperformed. With 21-year-old rookie 3B Mario Balderas (.318, 32 HR, 81 RBI) leading the way, Kansas City (84-78) finally ended eight years of frustration by finishing with a winning record while Omaha (80-82) actually recorded a better record than in 2037 but still ended up in the division basement. Not even the loss of star RF Danny Wheeler (.358, 14 HR, 60 RBI in 70 games) to a season ending knee injury in July could stop Las Vegas from strolling to the Southwest division crown, the Gamblers set a new NABL record, winning an incredible 114 games to enter the playoffs as heavy favourites to win the World Series. Trailing in their wake, a massive 32 games back were Houston (82-80) and even the best efforts of RF Dixon Bodean (.346, 23 HR, 79 RBI in 111 games) and 3B Bryant Deshields (.279, 24 HR, 99 RBI) couldn’t propel the Stars into playoff contention. Dallas (70-92) were disappointing offensively with the trio of C Hanus Koliewski (.261, 31 HR, 90 RBI), LF Alfonso Sosa (.276, 30 HR, 99 RBI) and the now 37-year-old 1B Jamie Boden (.253, 28 HR, 78 RBI) combining for nearly two-thirds of the Mustangs homeruns on the season. Phoenix had their issues with pitching, surrendering a league worst 884 runs on the season while Austin wasn’t far behind surrendering 822, both teams struggled to attract the crowds as just 1.2M turned out to see Phoenix with Austin enticing marginally more to see their games. Despite star 3B Tom Sterling having a somewhat down year by his standards (.271, 22 HR, 88 RBI) San Jose still managed to produce, riding the WL’s #2 scoring offense along with solid starting pitching and a lights-out bullpen (2.06 ERA combined) the Spartans cruised to the Pacific division crown winning 100 games for the first time in franchise history. Trailing in their wake were Sanfrancisco (85-77) who’s offense, led by the trio of LF Francisco Perez (.365, 22 HR, 103 RBI), CF Herminio Azurara (.310, 25 HR, 100 RBI) and C Sancho Guerra (.309, 20 HR, 78 RBI), kept them in most games but ultimately the lack of pitching cost them a chance at the wildcard spot (the Gold finished the season just two games back from Denver). The expected playoff push did not materialise in Los Angeles (74-88), as the Lynx hampered by injuries to key players struggled all season long, eventually finishing tied with Seattle and likely ending manager John Cochran’s run with the team. Seattle for their part continued to try to develop their young talent with LF Patrick Richardson and pitchers Bryan Marburg and Corvin Curry exceeding expectations, while San Diego’s pitchers, led by Willie Hampton (11-14, 4.18 ERA) and Peter Thompson (7-10, 3.64 ERA) played better than their records suggested held back by the Mariners offense, which failed to even find first gear scoring a paltry 3.5 runs per game, leaving the Mariners mired at the foot of the standings with a 65-97 record. Final Standings Midwest Division Oklahoma City 93-69* Denver 87-75* Minneapolis 86-76 Kansas City 84-78 Omaha 80-82 Southwest Division Las Vegas 114-48* Houston 82-80 Dallas 70-92 Phoenix 66-96 Austin 51-111 Pacific Division San Jose 100-62* Sanfrancisco 85-77 Los Angeles 74-88 Seattle 74-88 San Diego 65-97

11-13-2025, 04:16 AM	#190
JayW UK Minors (Double A) Join Date: May 2019 Location: Hertfordshire Posts: 197	2038 Season Notes April 9th – just seven games into the campaign, Indianapolis CF Marc Smith suffered a season ending elbow injury. April 15th – Boston’s rotation took a big hit when starter Greg Bailey suffered a torn rotator cuff ruling him out for at least 12 months. April 16th – Indianapolis LF Jose Cintron scored his 1000th career run as the Racers downed Atlanta 5-3. April 17th – Seattle LF Stephen Thomas reached the 1000 runs scored threshold in the Pioneers victory over Omaha. April 22nd – OKC 3B Xavier Cisneros blasted a trio of homeruns as the Outlaws defeated Minneapolis 6-5. April 23rd – OKC 1B Randy Harrington scored his 1000th career run as the Outlaws edged out Minneapolis for the second day in a row. April 28th – Indianapolis starter Ramon Schoof was finally charged with a loss after 30 starts, a streak that began back on June 1st 2037. May 2nd – OKC RF Chance Merritt drew 5 walks against Sanfrancisco equaling the NABL record. May 5th – Phoenix closer Uram Park blew his first save in 63 attempts, a streak that started way back in April 2035 when he was with Omaha. May 6th – Boston 3B Eric King was suspended by NABL commissioner Buddy McHugh for nine games for starting a brawl with Washington pitcher Jose Ibanez. May 8th – LA catcher Andrew Lewis collected a pair of hits against Cleveland, both of them homeruns and both of them also being Grand-Slams!! as Los Angeles saw off the Corsairs 12-7. May 16th – Kansas City pitcher Gerald Clark hit a Grand-Slam as the Tornadoes beat Denver 5-3. May 19th – Washington catcher Aaron Harris blasted a walk-off homer in the Generals 4-3 victory over Indianapolis, the homerun was all-the-more-sweeter as it was the 300th of Harris’ career. May 29th – Las Vegas catcher Chris Coates blasted the 300th homerun of his career as the Gamblers fell 5-4 against Houston. June 3rd – Pancho Sousa, Indianapolis’ star shortstop scored the 1000th run of his career. June 8th – Atlanta catcher Luis Guerra hit three solo homeruns in a losing effort as the Flames fell 7-5 to Baltimore. June 16th – Baltimore ace Rajion Samit suffered a torn labrum ending his season, in 13 games Samit was a healthy 7-4, 2.79 ERA June 20th – Dallas star Alfonso Sosa scored the 1000th run of his career on a Jamie Boden sacrifice fly. June 21st – St. Louis starter Darrell Haney suffered a forearm injury sidelining him for 8 weeks. June 23rd – LA starter Kade Blackford’s disappointing campaign continued when he was ruled out for the rest of the season with a ruptured finger tendon. In 13 starts on the season he had struggled to a 2-4, 3.97 ERA record. June 24th – 1B Matt Henderson collected the 2500th hit of his illustrious career in Philadelphia’s victory over division rivals Washington. July 1st – OKC 2B Jose Diaz reached 2000 career hits as the Outlaws dropped a close one to Dallas. July 3rd – New York pitcher Brent Brown became the second pitcher on the year to blast a Grand-Slam. July 9th – Minneapolis LF Jose Campos was traded to Phoenix for relievers Leland Watson and James Lawson, opening up playing time for the teams 2033 first round pick Stu Leach. July 11th – New York RF Roy Higgins suffered a torn meniscus in his left knee, ruling him out until at least September. July 12th – Las Vegas SS Joaquin Corona was held hitless in four at bats by Minneapolis ending his 26-game hitting streak. July 21st – Washington catcher Aaron Harris drove in the 1000th run of his career with an RBI double. July 22nd – St. Louis 2B Santiago Torres had a field day on the bases, swiping four bags as the Reds dismantle Philadelphia 12-3. July 23rd – Kansas City shortstop Cameron Toscano was the reason the Tornadoes overcame OKC 13-11, collecting four hits and eight RBI’s. July 27th – Sanfrancisco RF Francisco Perez was key in the Gold’s 7-5 victory over OKC, collecting six hits and driving in four runs. July 28th – with their season spiraling out of control with a disastrous 31-73 record, Austin made a move, firing manager Billy Jackson and naming former Cleveland player Ephraim Bonekamp as his replacement (Bonekamp was the first Dutch manager in NABL history) July 28th – Las Vegas star Danny Wheeler suffered a serious knee injury, ending his season prematurely. At the time of his injury Wheeler was the hottest player in baseball, as during July he had hit a scorching .436 with 6 homeruns and 23 RBI's in 23 games. July 29th – The first job for Ephraim Bonekamp to do after being named manager of Austin was give the green-light for the team to trade incumbent 2B Dan Robertson to Washington for a pair of prospects (1B Carlos Costa and C Nick Daniels) July 29th – Oklahoma City bolstered their bullpen by trading three up-and-coming prospects, 1B Edgardo Cardoza, SP Daniel Heading and SS Carlos Rodriguez, to Phoenix for veteran closer Uram Park. July 30th – St. Louis pitcher Mitch Woodroffe was forced to the DL with Shoulder inflammation, he would be sidelined for three weeks. July 31st – another St. Louis pitcher suffered an injury, this time McKenzie Ransford who suffered an ankle sprain that would rule him out until September. The rash of pitching injuries this close to the trading deadline left St. Louis little time to pull off any deals for reinforcements. August 1st – Las Vegas pitcher Angel Castro reached 2500 career strikeouts. August 2nd – SF 3B Matt Romero went 3-for-4 in a losing effort against Los Angeles, but still had cause to celebrate as the third hit was the 2000th of his career. August 3rd – Dallas LF Alfonso Sosa collected his 300th career homerun in style, connecting on a walk-off 2-RBI Homerun as the Mustangs saw off Houston 3-1. August 4th- ageless Dixon Bodean continued adding to his legacy, reaching the 4500-hit plateau. August 10th – Las Vegas catcher Chris Coates collected his 1000th career RBI in a win over Seattle. August 11th – Indianapolis star Jose Cintron blasted the 400th homerun of his career as the Racers downed Chicago. August 12th – Houston’s Dixon Bodean suffered a season ending back injury in the Stars defeat at the hands of Dallas, through 111 games Bodean was leading the team in batting (.346, 23 HR, 79 RBI) his loss was a huge blow to Houston’s playoff hopes. August 17th-25th – Boston catcher Eduardo Moreno blasted homeruns in seven consecutive games equaling Nelson Vasquez’s NABL record. August 18th – Chicago CF Josh Deric belted four doubles in a losing effort against New York. August 19th – Washington 3B Lee Morgan had a career day in the Generals big win over Detroit, he went 3-for-3, with a double and a pair of homeruns including a Grand-Slam, driving in 8 runs. August 23rd – Boston placed 3B Eric King on the 60-day DL with a shoulder injury ending his season. August 29th – Mitch Woodroffe’s shoulder problems were back forcing St. Louis to shut him down for the season. The first season of his mega deal had not gone to plan for Woodroffe, playing in 26 games his 10-9, 3.75 ERA record was not a good enough return on St. Louis’s investment September 3rd – Denver suffered a blow to their playoff hopes, losing LF John Binet for the season with a broken leg. September 4th – OKC 1B Randy Harrington had a big day in the Outlaws 14-5 win over Austin, going 3-for-4 with a pair of homeruns including a Grand-Slam and collecting 7 RBI’s, his big performance saw him reach the 1000 career RBI milestone. September 5th – Boston RF Jared Guest suffered a torn Hamstring ruling him out for the rest of the season, the second key position player to be ruled out for the season. September 8th – Chicago welcomed back pitcher Eugene Fey from a year out with injury, in Fey’s first game he pitched five shutout innings but was denied the win by a late bullpen slip-up. September 10th – Baltimore 3B Julio Ramirez reached the 1000 career RBI milestone in style, blasting a three-run homerun as the Bulls beat New York. September 16th – Indianapolis SS Pancho Sousa joined the 2000 hit club in the Racers 4-2 victory over Philadelphia. September 17th – Las Vegas CF Bryan Dale suffered broken ribs in a collision with teammate Vaughan Snyder, although he would miss the remainder of the regular season Las Vegas were hopeful he could return at some point in the playoffs. September 18th – on his return to action New York RF Roy Higgins carried on where he left off smacking five hits in a Senators victory over Tampa Bay. September 20th – Minneapolis RF Glenn McGhee played a huge role in the Bears victory over Oklahoma City, blasting three homeruns including the winning walk-off homer in the bottom of the tenth as Minneapolis edged a shootout 12-11. September 21st – Sanfrancisco 3B Matt Romero scored the 1000th run of his career.

11-16-2025, 08:59 AM	#191
JayW UK Minors (Double A) Join Date: May 2019 Location: Hertfordshire Posts: 197	2038 Playoffs Divisional Round In the east Boston would matchup with #1 seed Indianapolis in a re-match of the previous season’s divisional round between the two, while Atlanta, back in the playoffs for the first time in fifteen years would take on Chicago in a mouthwatering clash. In the west Las Vegas, owners of the best ever regular season record, faced off against wildcard team Denver, while Pacific division winners San Jose, would renew their playoff rivalry with OKC. The series between defending champions Indianapolis and Boston saw a re-match of their divisional round matchup from the previous year with roles reversed, with Indianapolis now the defending champions and Boston aiming to unseat them. Each team featured offenses that could score runs for fun, with Boston relying heavily on the long ball (an NABL best 207 HR’s on the season) while Indianapolis preferred to get men on base (.352 OBP) to do their damage. With the wealth of offensive weapons at each team’s disposal the series would likely be won or lost with pitching, both staffs had had their troubles during the season but the Racers did have home-field advantage and ace Ramon Schoof had been almost unbeatable at Raceway Stadium (15-2, 2.24 ERA). Game one was the opposite of what most people expected as both starters, Ramon Schoof (IND) and Brett Knight (BOS), pitched deep into the game before Pilgrims catcher Eduardo Moreno slammed a ninth inning solo homerun off Racers reliever Jose Franco to eventually lift Boston to a hard fought 3-2 series opening victory. Game two was much the same with pitching holding sway until Boston LF Rob Penney broke Indianapolis hearts with a late 2-run homer to seal another 3-2 Boston victory. Back in Boston, game three continued the surprising trend as both starters held the opposition in check through the opening five frames, Indianapolis broke the deadlock on a CF Pancho Sousa RBI-Double in the top of the sixth, but failed to build on that lead when 3B Jose Villalobos hit into a double play to end the threat. That missed opportunity loomed large when next inning Boston 1B Alberto Rangel drilled a three-run blast to turn the game on its head, the Pilgrims added an insurance run in the eighth before Mike Mayfield retired the Racers in order to cap off Boston’s impressive series sweep. Indianapolis scored just five runs during the series (their regular season average per game was five) while also being becoming the latest defending champion to exit the playoffs at the first hurdle, a run that now extended to six straight years. The other ELDS was the eagerly awaited matchup between Atlanta and Chicago, with the teams boasting the NABL’s top two scoring offenses and solid pitching an entertaining series was expected. On the occasion of their first meaningful postseason game in fifteen years it seemed Atlanta got stage fright, as the best pitcher in baseball Seung-Jae Park delivered a pitching clinic (7.0 IP,3H, 1R, 8K) and Chicago rolled to a comfortable 5-1 victory. The following night was a similar story as once again the home town Flames laid an egg, being out-hit 11-4 and making two costly errors in allowing Chicago to cruise to a 6-1 win leaving Atlanta on the verge of elimination. Mario Chavez took the mound for Chicago in game three, looking to deal the knockout blow to Atlanta’s hopes, and for five innings he held the Flames in check as the Zephyrs built a two-run lead, a RF Mike Hicks solo homerun and a 2-RBI double from CF Alex Blanca chased Chavez from the game and gave Atlanta their first lead of the series. Chicago’s Enrique Rodriguez coughed up another three runs in the seventh before the Flames padded their lead with a further two in the eighth, Chicago briefly threatened in the ninth, putting men on the corners before a double play put an end to the Zephyrs rally as Atlanta avoided the series sweep and elimination with an 8-2 victory. With ace Seung-Jae Park on the mound for game four Chicago fans were in confident mood but someone must have given Atlanta the wrong script as the Flames buried Park under an avalanche of runs, chasing him from the game in the second inning having surrendered seven runs while retiring only three of the eleven batters he faced. Chicago managed to stem the tide of runs the rest of the way but emptied their bullpen doing so and had to resort to using position player Peter Reddy to pitch the ninth as Atlanta waltzed to an easy 13-2 series tying victory. Back home in Atlanta and full of confidence for the decider, the Flames started where they left off in game four, battering Chicago starter Eugene Fey into submission scoring six early runs as they built a commanding seven run lead. Far from meekly laying down Chicago fought back, homeruns from Aaron Payton, Julio Cruz and Dave Cantrell helped cut the Flames lead to two heading into the final frame, where despite a nervy ninth for the home fans, Flames closer Rich Robinson got the job done as Atlanta held on for a 7-5 series clinching win. Wildcard team Denver entered their series with 114-win Las Vegas as heavy underdogs, the Gamblers boasted the #1 scoring offense and the best pitching staff in the NABL by far and were many peoples favourite to lift the World Series. The wildcats by contrast led the WL in homeruns with 193 (second only to Boston in the NABL) but struggled to consistently put men on base to take advantage of their power, Denver also featured an erratic pitching staff that on their day could win a game by themselves but on another, just as easily lose a game. The series opened in Las Vegas and the home side quickly got into a rhythm, scoring early and building a 3-0 lead, veteran starter Angel Castro was solid through six innings but an uncharacteristic collapse by the Gamblers bullpen (allowing 5 runs over the final two frames) swung the game in Denver’s favour as the Wildcats surprised Las Vegas to steal the series opener 5-3. Denver were far from their best the following night, putting on a wild rollercoaster ride performance featuring plenty of good (4 hits, 13 strikeouts) and plenty of bad (11 walks, 3 hit batsmen). In the pivotal sixth inning three Denver pitchers (starter Ivan Martinez along with relievers Jonathan Shearne and Randall Bradford) combined for three strikeouts, five walks, a hit batsman, a wild pitch and a balk, the Wildcats also made a pair of errors in the inning for good measure, all told ten Las Vegas batters came to the plate and faced a total of 38 pitches without once managing to make contact (not even a foul ball)!! Amazingly, despite all the help Las Vegas only scored three runs on the day and even though the Gamblers did not make the most of their chances, Denver never really threatened to make any inroads as strong pitching performances from Holden Willis and Phil Redmond held the Wildcats in check as the Gamblers evened the series with a 3-0 win. In game three both starters, Jesus Delgado (LV) and Valentin Morales (DEN) went six innings and put up identical numbers (6IP, 5H, 2ER, 2BB, 6K), Denver pushed ahead on 1B Daniel Kirk’s 2-run homer in the seventh only for 3B Joseph Floores and OF Khayn Triplett to hit homeruns for Las Vegas as the Gamblers scraped home 5-4 to edge ahead in the series. Game four was another close battle early on, before Denver broke the game open scoring six unanswered (including a four-run outburst in the 8th) to even the series at two. Back home for the decider, Las Vegas edged into the lead on a 3B Joseph Floores homer only for Denver pitcher Ivan Martinez to belt a homerun of his own to even things up, the two teams continued trading scores until a SS Joaquin Corona 3-run blast pushed the Gamblers into a comfortable three run lead and despite a wobble in the ninth when Denver scored twice, Las Vegas held on for a 7-6 win and booked their place in the WLCS for the third year in a row. Oklahoma City faced off against San Jose in the other WLDS looking for their first playoff series win against the Spartans (having lost their two previous meetings), both teams boasted strong pitching but San Jose had the edge because of their free scoring offense (#2 in the west) and in particular their aggressive baserunning (an NABL record 173 stolen bases). It didn’t take long for the Spartans to challenge OKC on the basepaths, lead-off man Roberto Gonzalez walked and then stole second where he was stranded, he was at it again in the third, reaching first before stealing second where once again the Spartans offense sputtered leaving him stuck on base. The Outlaws took the lead in the fourth when CF Steve McCulloch took Pedro Rosario deep for the first run of the series, and when OKC starter Mark Graham left the game after seven strong innings the Outlaws held a slim 2-1 advantage. That lead disappeared quickly as Ken Maynard surrendered 3-runs to put the hometown Spartans in control, San Jose closer Dave Day wasted little time seeing off OKC in the ninth to preserve the hard fought 4-2 victory. Game two saw an excellent pitching performance from OKC starter Rafer MacNeil (7.1IP, 5H, 1ER, 6K) as the Outlaws built a 4-1 lead, OKC survived a scare in the ninth when CF Doug Matthews blasted a 2-out, 2-run homer but closer Uram Park recovered to strike out 1B Lucio Guerrero to end the game and tie the series. Outlaw starter Robert Warwick certainly enjoyed pitching at home in game 3, surrendering two runs on just four hits through eight strong innings before handing over to closer Uram Park, in an eerily similar performance to his game two outing Park struggled, surrendering a solo homerun to Lucio Guerrero and leaving men on the corners for John Watkins to deal with, Watkins took just two pitches to close out the game, enticing Tom Sterling to hit tamely into a double play. With the Spartans facing elimination, OKC starter Mark Graham chose the wrong time to have a poor outing, lasting just 4.2 innings and allowing six runs to put San Jose in the driving seat, OKC made a game of it cutting the lead in half but a Juan Rosario 2-run homer wrapped things up for the Spartans sending the series to a deciding game five. A disastrous start to the game put OKC behind the eight ball in their quest to finally overcome the Spartans in the playoffs. San Jose used power hitting and aggressive baserunning to open an early six run lead, a spirited fightback by Outlaws fell just short, as they dropped the decider 6-5. The Spartans improved their playoff record to 3-0 against the Outlaws and marched onto the WLCS for the fourth time in six years.

11-16-2025, 09:01 AM	#192
JayW UK Minors (Double A) Join Date: May 2019 Location: Hertfordshire Posts: 197	2038 Playoffs Championship Round The EL pennant series was the fourth playoff meeting between Atlanta and Boston with the Flames yet to taste defeat (ending the Pilgrims postseason run three years in a row between 2016 and 2018). That proud record was in danger from the very first pitch as CF Weldon Render blasted the ball deep into the stands to give Boston an early lead, the pilgrims continued their barrage with both LF Rob Penney and 3B Steve Raines also going deep as they took an iron grip on the game, eventually cruising to a 9-2 opening night victory. Both starters (Dillon Furr for Atlanta and Gerald Helton for Boston) began well in game two, keeping the game scoreless through four innings, Atlanta broke the deadlock taking the lead in the fifth courtesy of a LF Alex Holt RBI double only for Dillon Furr and the defense to gift Boston the lead (2 errors and a HR surrendered). The Pilgrims needed no further invitation as they held the Flames scoreless the rest of the way to take a 2-0 series lead. A first inning homerun from CF Alex Blanca staked the Flames to an early lead in game three, but once again fielding miscues (another two errors) gifted the lead to Boston, unlike in game two these mistakes did not bury the Flames but instead spurred them on as Alex Blanca slammed a two-run homerun (his second of the night) to put them back in front. Alas the Flames could not hold onto the lead as a soul crushing bullpen collapse in the eighth (Boston blasted two homeruns and scored five runs in total) saw the Pilgrims emerge with a 7-4 win. With their backs to the wall and facing elimination Atlanta came out on the front foot for game four, Raul Osorio, 7.2 IP,3H, 1ER, 6K and Jackson Wells 1.1IP, 3K, produced the Flames best pitching performance of the playoffs, this coupled with timely scoring from the offense saw the Flames handle Boston with ease keeping their slim championship hopes alive. There was no repeat of their game four heroics for Atlanta the following night as Boston exploded for five runs over the opening two frames, homeruns for C Eduardo Moreno and LF Rob Penney in the middle innings took the game away from the Flames as the Pilgrims bounced Atlanta out of the playoffs with a 7-2 series clinching win, booking their place in the World Series for the second time in three years. The WLCS saw Las Vegas meet San Jose in the playoffs for the third year in a row (and fourth time overall), the series promised to be an intriguing one featuring the best two teams in baseball. With not much to choose between them, Las Vegas were seen has having the slight edge courtesy of homefield advantage and their excellent team defense. San Jose 1B Manny Chavez provided the offensive spark in game one, blasting a pair of homeruns as the Spartans handed Las Vegas a humbling 5-1 defeat to open the series, the following night it was Las Vegas OF Khayn Triplett who provided the offensive fireworks, slamming his own pair of homeruns as Las Vegas evened the series ahead of three critical games in California. Game three saw Jesus Delgado (LV) and Rick Sauer (SJ) battle each other to a standstill before exiting after seven innings with the game tied at two apiece, things immediately began to get interesting as 3B Joseph Floores and LF Vaughan Snyder blasted homeruns to put the Gamblers in the driving seat, not to be outdone San Jose roared back in the bottom of the eighth with Manny Chavez and 1B Lucio Guerrero going deep to tie things up once again. Las Vegas took the lead in the top of the ninth on a CF John Smyth RBI double only for the usually reliable closer Philip Redmond to cough up the lead and allow the Spartans to send the game to extra innings. In the top of the twelfth the Gamblers once again edged ahead and once more the Spartans fought back, this time winning the game on a walk-off 2-run homer from catcher Juan Rosario. After the dramatic 8-7 walk-off win in game three, the Spartans were brought back down to earth in game four as veteran Las Vegas pitcher Angel Castro controlled proceedings from start to finish going the distance as the Gamblers tied the series with a comfortable 4-1 victory. San Jose were three outs from victory in game five when Las Vegas finally came to life, down 3-1 in the top of the ninth back-to-back singles from 1B Ed Matthews and RF Robert Frean were followed up by a huge homerun from star slugger Joseph Floores to put the Gamblers ahead. After Philip Redmond’s failure to close out game three, manager Bruce Weaver turned to Lorenzo Rodriguez for the save, and Rodriguez delivered, sitting the Spartans down in order to secure the come from behind 4-3 win. Back home in Nevada for the deciding game five Las Vegas set about dispatching the Spartans blasting into an early four run lead, San Jose were not done yet and clawed their way back into the game, closing the gap to one after seven. But that was as close as they got as 3B Joseph Floores slammed his fourth homerun of the series to put Las Vegas ahead by three, before Philip Redmond laid his ghosts to bed with a dominant showing in the ninth, striking out the side, as the Gamblers took the game 6-3 and booked their place in the World Series.

11-16-2025, 09:03 AM	#193
JayW UK Minors (Double A) Join Date: May 2019 Location: Hertfordshire Posts: 197	2038 Playoffs World Series WL champions Las Vegas welcomed CF Bryan Dale back from injury in time for the World Series, with John Smyth the unlucky man to step aside. Boston’s powerful offense gave them more than a puncher’s chance against the NABL’s best team in Las Vegas but with the home advantage plus the best pitching staff in the game the Gamblers were favoured to win the series in six. Game one was a tight battle until the seventh inning when CF Brayan Dale slugged a 2-run homerun (his second of the night) giving Las Vegas the lead, the Gamblers bullpen then took over retiring the final six Boston batters on just fifteen pitches to wrap up a 4-2 series opening win. Just as in the previous game, the first three innings of game two were tight with both starters in control, the teams traded runs in the fourth before Las Vegas took the lead in the fifth on a Joseph Floores homerun and never let go, their pitchers retiring 13 straight Pilgrim batters through the end of the 8th. George Shreeve singled to lead off the 9th, offering a glimmer of hope for Boston, but two batters later the game ended with Lucio Rodriguez hitting into a double play. Seventh inning homeruns from Las Vegas pair Joseph Floores and catcher Chris Coates broke open game three, with solid work from the Gamblers bullpen keeping the Boston hitters quiet the rest of the night Las Vegas won going away to open a 3-0 series lead. Game four saw Boston jump out to an early lead on a Rob Penney homerun before the game descended into chaos. In the fourth inning Las Vegas dangerman Joseph Floores was hit by an errant Brett Knight pitch for the second time on the night and the fourth time in the series. A furious Floores, who felt he was being targeted deliberately, charged the mound sparking a benches-clearing brawl, when the dust settled and order was restored, both Floores and Knight were ejected and proceedings continued. Las Vegas who seemed rattled by the whole affair never recovered, slipping to a disappointing 5-1 defeat. Before the start of game five Floores and Knight received their punishment for their part in the ugly scenes during the previous game, both players were suspended for three games and would play no further part in the series. Game five saw both team’s trade scores early before Bryan Dale’s 2-RBI double put Las Vegas on course for a series clinching win but an Eduardo Moreno 2-run homer and a pinch-hit homerun from Trent Lambert turned the game on its head as Boston held off Las Vegas to send the series back to Nevada. Game six was another hotly contested one with first Las Vegas then Boston being in control. In the top if the eighth with bases loaded and no-one out, Boston seemed primed to take the lead, but Gamblers reliever Michinori Morita struck out Steve Raines before enticing veteran 2B Jack Underwood to hit into an inning ending double play. Las Vegas took full advantage in the home half as Bryan Dale smashed a 2-RBI single to put the Gamblers on the verge of their second World Championship, Philip Redmond took the mound for the ninth and put the final exclamation mark on a wonderful season for Las Vegas with a three-strikeout inning. The return from injury of CF Bryan Dale proved pivotal for Las Vegas, he was named series MVP for his performance (.427, 2 HR, 8 RBI’s) as the Gamblers World Series victory brought the curtain down on the NABL’s first twenty-five years of existence. 2038 Playoff Recap Divisional Series EL: Atlanta 3-2 Chicago, Boston 3-0 Indianapolis WL: Las Vegas 3-2 Denver, San Jose 3-2 Oklahoma City Championship Series EL: Boston 4-1 Atlanta WL: Las Vegas 4-2 San Jose World Series Las Vegas 4-2 Boston

11-19-2025, 04:10 AM	#194
JayW UK Minors (Double A) Join Date: May 2019 Location: Hertfordshire Posts: 197	2038 Season Leaders and Awards EL Batting Hits 221 David Evans (CHI) 206 Jose Villalobos (IND) 200 Glenn Hansen (STL) Batting Avg .362 David Evans (CHI) .341 Jose Villalobos (IND) .341 Pancho Sousa (IND) Homeruns 43 Jerry Wright (NY) 39 Aaron Harris (WAS) 38 Jose Cintron (IND) RBI 112 Jose Cintron (IND) 109 David Evans (CHI) 104 Jerry Wright (NY) Stolen Bases 41 Pancho Sousa (IND) 33 Marcos Casa (WAS) 33 Michael Sleigh (TB) EL Pitching Wins 22 Seung-Jae Park (CHI) 18 Ramon Schoof (IND) 17 David Adams (PHI) ERA 2.40 Shane Olson (PHI) 2.78 Seung-Jae Park (CHI) 2.89 Les Scott (STL) Strikeouts 287 Les Scott (STL) 265 Shane Olson 253 cristobal Chapa (BAL) Saves 44 Steve Berg (TB) 41 Josh Renshaw (IND) 41 Rich Sutton (CHA) WL Batting Hits 224 Francisco Perez (SF) 215 Joaquin Corona (LV) 203 Hector Soto (HOU) Batting Avg .371 Joaquin Corona (LV) .365 Francisco Perez (SF) .337 Doug Matthews (SJ) Homeruns 35 Fernando Hernandez (MIN) 34 Gary Davis (KC) 32 Mario Balderas (KC) RBI 121 Juan Torres (KC) 106 Randy Harrington (OKC) 103 Fernando Hernandez (MIN) Stolen Bases 45 Joaquin Corona (LV) 43 Jose Diaz (OKC) 43 Julius Spencer (HOU) WL Pitching Wins 19 Rafer MacNeil (OKC) 19 Holden Willis (LV) 18 Angel Castro (LV) ERA 2.72 Julio Torres (LA) 2.76 Rafer MacNeil (OKC) 2.78 David Lyons (OMH) Strikeouts 254 Rafer MacNeil (OKC) 236 David Lyons (OMH) 225 Jesus Delgado (LV) Saves 51 Philip Redmond (LV) 47 Dave Day (SJ) 43 Barton Rogers (SF) 2038 Season Awards Batting Champion – Chicago’s 2B David Evans (.362) won the EL batting title beating Indianapolis duo Jose Villalobos and Pancho Sousa (both .341). Las Vegas shortstop Joaquin Corona (.371) triumphed in the west after a season long battle with Sanfrancisco star Francisco Perez (.365) Homerun Champion – in the east New York 1B Jerry Wright (43) held off Washington catcher Aaron Harris (39) to win his second consecutive title. Minneapolis 1B Fernando Hernandez (35) edged Kansas City’s Gary Davis (34) to win the WL title. Outstanding Hitter – Chicago star David Evans (.362, 24 HR, 109 RBI) secured his first Outstanding Hitter Award, narrowly pipping New York’s Jerry Wright to the honour. In the west Sanfrancisco’s Francisco Perez (.365, 22 HR, 103 RBI) narrowly beat Las Vegas star Joaquin Corona (.371, 6 HR, 56 RBI, 45 SB) to claim his maiden award. Outstanding Pitcher – Chicago ace Seung-Jae Park (22-6, 2.78 ERA) was the unanimous winner in the east while in the west OKC’s Rafer MacNeil (19-6, 2.76 ERA) held off a strong challenge from Minneapolis star Steve Gream (17-11, 2.92 ERA) to claim his third consecutive OPA Rookie of the Year – Indianapolis young RF Jim Mailes (.295, 13 HR, 91 RBI) beat out Baltimore LF Nick Romero (.276, 18 HR, 81 RBI) to win the EL award. Kansas City’s 21-year-old 3B Mario Balderas (.318, 32 HR, 81 RBI) was named the unanimous winner in the west. Manager of the Year – in the east Atlanta manager Roberto Rodriguez took home the award for his outstanding work leading the Flames to the playoffs. The western league winner could only ever be one man, Las Vegas manager Bruce Weaver, after he masterminded the Gamblers record breaking run to the World Series title. Glove Wizard Awards EL – P Edward Williams (CLE) - C Gabriel Lopez (DET) – 1B Jerry Wright (NY) – 2B Anibal Trueba (CHA) – 3B Jose Villalobos (IND) – SS George Shreeve (BOS) – LF Rusty Barnes (CLE) – CF Alex Bayley (CLE) – RF Mike Hicks (ATL) Glove Wizard Awards WL – P Lucious Sandford (AUS) – C Juan Rosario (SJ) – 1B Richard Shields (LA) – 2B Bobby Cox (DAL) – 3B Joseph Floores (LV) – SS Brandon Buck (PHO) – LF Roberto Gonzalez (SJ) – CF Julius Spencer (AUS) – RF Raul Cruz (AUS) Interesting Facts – Three players, Sanfrancisco’s Jose Salazar (17), OKC’s Felix Vazquez (17) and Kansas City’s Tom Carter (16) all hit more triples on the season than Austin’s entire roster (15). Sanfrancisco star Francisco Perez hit 62 doubles during the season, setting a new league record. Las Vegas reliever Michinori Morita had been on a tear over the last three seasons, playing in 254 games and owning a 33-6 record with 6 saves (including his phenomenal 18-win 2036 season), while his 268 strikeouts were the most by a relief pitcher during that timeframe.

11-21-2025, 04:16 AM	#195
JayW UK Minors (Double A) Join Date: May 2019 Location: Hertfordshire Posts: 197	Interlude – Player Profiles I thought we’d take a look at two recently retired players who, while they don’t possess the resumes to have anything but an outside shot at entry to the Hall of Fame, will never-the-less be remembered as club legends by fans of the franchises they spent the majority of their careers with. Richie Rambeaux College – N/A (High School) Drafted – 2016 – 1ST Round - #2 Overall by Cleveland Corsairs Current Team – None (Retired) Previous Teams – CLE (2016-2033), BOS (2034), STL (2034-2035), WAS (2036) Drafted second overall by Cleveland, the eighteen-year-old Rambeaux was immediately named as BNN’s #2 prospect. The first two years of his career were spent bouncing around Cleveland’s minor league system where the young Rambeaux learnt the finer points of baseball with varying degrees of success. When he finally broke through into the NABL in 2018 it appeared he had been promoted too soon (.216, 1 HR, 9 RBI in 41 games) and when he followed that up with another disappointing campaign the following year (.233, 2 HR, 11 RBI in 46 games), the inevitable questions regarding his future began to surface. The club however showed faith and traded away several established players before the 2020 campaign to open playing time for younger players including Rambeaux, the move proved fruitful as Cleveland’s young core led the team all the way to the World Series where they fell to OKC in six. Over the next five seasons Rambeaux showed steady improvement establishing himself as one of the premier infielders in the EL, culminating in an Outstanding Hitter Award in 2025. A serious shoulder injury limited him to only 69 games in 2026 but he returned the following year to play a leading role in the Corsairs run to their maiden World Championship. The club failed to build on that success and Rambeaux spent the next six years toiling away on mediocre teams that never threatened to reach the playoffs (a combined 435-537 record during those years). Prior to 2034, a now 35-year-old Rambeaux was deemed surplus to requirements and left Cleveland to join Boston, a move that quickly turned sour, a fractured finger and below par play saw him traded to St. Louis for a bevy of prospects. After an eighteen month stay in St. Louis, Rambeaux chose to join Washington for one last go-around where on 29th April he collected the 2500th hit of his career, one of the few highlights of a largely forgettable season. At the conclusion of the campaign (his nineteenth in the major leagues) Rambeaux announced his retirement. Despite the obvious decline in his play during the final few years, Rambeaux will be fondly remembered by Cleveland fans for the first sixteen years of his career, at the time of his leaving the Corsairs he was the club’s all-time leader in games played (1955), hits (2259), homeruns (375), RBI’s (1183). Career Stats Regular Season G - 2283 AB - 8817 RS - 1336 H - 2533 2B - 347 3B - 42 HR - 418 RBI - 1352 BB - 712 K - 1854 SB - 150 CS - 56 AVG - .287 OBP – .345 SLG – .478 OPS – .824 OPS+ 128 WAR – 59.3 Post Season G - 46 AB - 181 RS - 29 H - 60 2B - 13 3B - 3 HR - 10 RBI - 33 BB - 14 K - 47 SB - 4 CS - 4 AVG - .331 OBP – .383 SLG – .602 OPS – .985 OPS+ 175 Career Achievements Outstanding Hitter Award x1 (2025) Homerun Champion x 1 (2024) 6-time All-Star 3-time Glove Wizard 1-time World Series winner (2027) Jamie Boden College – N/A Drafted – N/A - 2017 International discovery by Sanfrancisco Current Team – None (Retired) Previous Teams – SF (2017-2020), DEN (2020-2035), WAS (2036), SD (2036-2037), DAL (2038) Discovered playing semi-professionally as a sixteen-year-old in the obscure Aruban league in 2017, Boden was immediately snapped up by Sanfrancisco spending the next two years in their International Complex before making his way to the USA to continue his professional career. After two largely underwhelming seasons in which he never rose above AA level nor batted above .230, Boden was shipped to Denver in a deal that netted the Gold veteran outfielder Steve Wolfe. The move proved to be the making of Boden as he quickly found his feet in Denver moving through the Wildcats minor league system before making their NABL opening day roster for 2022. He never looked back playing in 161 games and winning the WL Rookie of the Year award, Boden followed his impressive rookie season with an even better campaign as Denver won the World Series the following year. Boden continued to play well, even forming a formidable one-two punch with superstar Dixon Bodean, but despite the best efforts of the pair Denver found the postseason hard to come by, making only three appearances before Bodean moved on to Tampa Bay in search of a World Series ring. After another typically strong season in 2035 Jamie Boden called time on his stay in Denver, leaving the Wildcats as their all-time leader in every major batting category (Hits 2065, Homeruns 417 and RBI’s 1259). Washington signed him to a three-year deal but the move proved short lived, as less than six months later Boden found himself traded for the second time in his career, this time to San Diego. A serious back injury robbed him of a majority of the 2037 season and ended his time in San Diego with the Mariners trading him to Dallas for a pair of draft picks. Far from being washed up Boden (now 37) produced his best season since his penultimate year in Denver, playing in 152 games and hitting 28 homeruns, but at the end of the season with Dallas struggling and looking to re-build, Boden found himself on the outside looking in and rather than join the merry-go-round of free agency, he announced his retirement from the NABL. Career Stats Regular Season G - 2419 AB - 8290 RS – 1250 H - 2324 2B - 476 3B - 19 HR - 460 RBI - 1397 BB - 956 K - 1891 SB - 4 CS - 4 AVG - .280 OBP – .363 SLG – .509 OPS – .872 OPS+ 147 WAR – 63.3 Post Season G – 37 AB - 107 RS – 9 H - 22 2B - 3 3B - 0 HR - 2 RBI - 6 BB - 10 K - 24 SB - 0 CS - 0 AVG - .206 OBP – .280 SLG – .290 OPS – 569 OPS+ 64 Career Achievements Rookie of the Year (2022) 6-time All-Star 2-time Glove Wizard

11-24-2025, 03:55 AM	#196
JayW UK Minors (Double A) Join Date: May 2019 Location: Hertfordshire Posts: 197	2039 Off-Season After his team’s dismal 59-win season, Cleveland owner Edwin Colon made the move that most Corsairs fans had been hoping would happen for several years, when he fired both, longtime GM Miguel Megellas and manager J.J Beck. His choices for their replacements were met with plenty of excitement, first highly regarded first-time GM Leo Delannoy was recruited away from New York’s front office where he had spent time as both director of scouting and assistant GM, then four-time manager of the year and two-time World Series winner Pat Bennett was lured on board after leaving Chicago. The Zephyr’s decided to look to an in-house replacement for the departed Bennett, elevating bench coach Jeffrey Orr to the role of manager for the 2039 season, another understudy getting a chance as manager was former Detroit bench coach Joseph Noble who was hired as Phoenix’s new skipper. In Tampa Bay, the Hurricanes made a move straight out of left-field, hiring Blake Reese as the club’s new manager, Reese had no managerial experience but did have nearly 20 years as an NABL scouting director including stints at Boston, LA, Denver and San Jose, while on the west coast after a largely frustrating three-year run, Los Angeles parted ways with manager John Cochran, turning to former Baltimore pitching coach Kevin Carter as replacement. In a relatively quiet off-season, Philadelphia were hit hard by the departures of catcher Mike Willis, who left to join Tampa Bay on a 4-year $76M deal, and superstar first baseman Matt Henderson who headed out west to join Sanfrancisco on a three year $48M deal, also heading to the bay area was evergreen RF Dixon Bodean who left Houston after one year. Minneapolis were another team hit hard by free agency, losing 3B Cesar Salazar to Washington (4-years @ $56M) and star pitcher Steve Gream to Philadelphia (4-years @ $70M). Defending champions Las Vegas said goodbye to veteran catcher Chris Coates, who joined Omaha on a three-year deal, 37-year-old pitcher Angel Castro who headed to Baltimore for $28M over two years and CF Bryan Dale who turned a World Series MVP award into a lucrative four-year deal with Tampa Bay. Chicago beefed up their bullpen with the addition of former Sanfrancisco closer Barton Rogers, bringing him to the Windy City for two years at a cool $10M per season, division rivals Indianapolis poached 1B Randy Harrington from OKC on a team friendly one-year pact and also Pitcher Pedro Rosario (6-years @ $94M) who joined from San Jose after failing to reach an agreement on an extension. After losing Rosario the Spartans turned their attention to Miami’s Jim Champion as a replacement, luring him on board with a 6-year $70M deal and saving over $20M in the process. Rather than lose star LF Ramon Vega for nothing at the end of the season, Denver chose to cash in on him, executing a trade with St. Louis for catcher Stan Hutchinson and starting pitcher Darrell Haney, the Reds immediately signed Vega to a lucrative 2-year $45M extension, leaving all parties happy with the transaction. After the loss of star pitcher Steve Gream to Philadelphia, Minneapolis found a replacement in the form of LA’s Julio Torres, trading five international prospects (SP Enrique Castillo, SS Armando Maldonado, SS Hector Coronado, CL Armando Lucero and SP Alfonso Quintanilla) to the Lynx for their top starter. The 2039 draft class featured only one High School player amongst the top prospects, RF Desmond Starks, who was garnering some attention as a possible top-five pick, while also being tipped to be drafted early were several college infielders led by Mississippi State 2B Jackie Young, a quality all-round player and Southern Illinois 2B Stephon Starring, who was better offensively but not as polished as defensively, Rice shortstop David Browne and Florida 3B Nick Moseley were also expected to go high. The top pitching prospects were all college players with Vanderbilt’s Todd Morgan along with Temple’s Bobby Bruder, Buffalo star Michael Thomas and Uconn’s Joe Taylor all standing out. Owning the first overall pick and with holes all over their roster, many people expected Austin to trade down in exchange for extra picks or prospects to help with their inevitable rebuild, in the end Austin stood pat and selected Mississippi State 2B Jackie Young. Cleveland made Rice shortstop David Browne the second overall pick before Miami landed Florida’s star 3B Nick Mosley keeping him in the sunshine state, New Orleans called the name of pitcher Todd Morgan fourth although there were rumblings that he would return to college for another year. San Diego also went with a pitcher with the fifth pick tabbing Buffalo’s Michael Thomas before Phoenix named RF Desmond Starks as their selection making him the first high school player taken in the draft. Several of the touted top picks dropped lower than expected, pitcher Bobby Bruder fell to St. Louis at #9 while fellow pitcher Joe Taylor landed in LA with the 11th pick, the biggest faller was Illinois State’s 2B Stephon Starring, a predicted top five pick, who dropped into Kansas City’s lap at #13. Although Austin stood pat with the No1 overall pick they got creative during the rest of the draft, they sent starting pitcher Adrian Knapp to Las Vegas for the Gamblers Supplemental round pick, which they used on corner fielder George Thomas. The Kings then dealt their high second round pick to Minneapolis for the Bears second and third round selections which turned into 1B Lou Nelson (2nd Round) and pitcher Martin Lee (3rd Round), the Kings third round pick was used in much the same way in a deal with Indianapolis which netted Austin the Racers third and fifth round picks which were then packaged together for Denver’s top fifty prospect RF Freddie Sherman. When all was said and done, the Kings wheeling and dealing resulted in them acquiring plenty of young prospects to help their rebuild, four of which were listed in BNN’s top 50 prospects (2B Jackie Young #9, RF Freddie Sherman #33, 1B/3B George Thomas #36 and 1B Lou Nelson #45). According to BNN the usual suspects would once again be the front runners in the respective playoff races, in the Atlantic division both Boston and New York would do battle for the division crown, while the Central division would likely be a toss-up between Chicago and Indianapolis for the title with the other three teams not even expected to reach .500 for the season. Atlanta were favoured to defend their Southeast division crown although big spending Charlotte ($200M team salary) and Tampa Bay ($182M) would both push the Flames hard. In the west, the Midwest division would once again be a tight battle with four of the five teams expected to challenge with only Minneapolis, after several key players left in free agency, expected to be left behind, Las Vegas were predicted to once again claim the Southwest division with Houston the only real threat to the Gamblers. San Jose were in pole position to claim the Pacific division for the sixth time in seven years while Sanfrancisco, after their off-season spending (adding stars 1B Matt Henderson and LF Dixon Bodean to an already strong offense) were hotly tipped to be their main rivals.

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JayW UK Minors (Double A) Join Date: May 2019 Location: Hertfordshire Posts: 197	2039 Regular Season Eastern League Review Led by Brett Knight (19-11, 3.16 ERA) and Rob Penney (.312, 35 HR, 97 RBI) Boston claimed the Atlantic division title for the fourth season in a row winning 93 games, finishing four ahead of New York (89-73) who hit 195 homeruns with 1B Jerry Wright (43) and C Roberto Saldana (31) leading the way. The Senators finished the season on a hot streak (winning 12 of their last 15 games) but earlier inconsistencies cost them a chance at overhauling Boston for the division crown. Philadelphia finished the season with 76 wins their worst return since 2030, as their new look offense sans Matt Henderson and Mike Willis struggled to score consistently, Washington (70-92) failed to build on their 86-win 2038 campaign with injuries the main reason for their decline while Baltimore slumped to a 68-94 record held back by the league’s worst offense. Chicago (98-64) with star SS David Evans (.349, 27 HR, 113 RBI) and the EL’s top pitching staff led by Eugene Fey (19-9, 3.09 ERA), Mario Chavez (17-4, 2.99 ERA) and Sueng-Jae Park (17-8, 2.61 ERA) leading the way knocked Indianapolis (94-68) off the top to claim the Central division crown, the Racers boasted the EL’s #2 scoring offense (805 runs) but suffered several key injuries during the season allowing the Zephyrs to edge ahead in the standings. St. Louis (78-84) stumbled through another disappointing season but this time could not blame injuries for their poor form, Cleveland’s new manager Pat Bennett lifted the Corsairs to a 68-94 season, turning the team over to the new guard, SS Chad Hammond (25 y/o), 1B Blake Hanson (26 y/o), CF Alex Bayley (23 y/o) and pitcher Pedro Nieves (23 y/o) with mixed results. Bringing up the rear were Detroit who ended the season 65-97 and with their first basement finish in seven years. Atlanta followed up their excellent 2038 season with another strong campaign comfortably taking the Southeast division with a 97-65 record, Mike Hicks (.271, 24 HR, 75 RBI) and C Luis Guerra (.281, 23 HR, 73 RBI) provided most of the offense but it was their pitching that led the way (15 shutouts and the EL #1 bullpen). Trailing in their wake were big spending Charlotte (87-75) with rookie sensation 1B Haden Bowden (.328, 32 HR, 95 RBI) and RF Michael Miller (.320, 22 HR, 107 RBI) the stars of the show, and Tampa Bay (86-76) owners of the EL #1 offense, driven by LF Joe Scott (.344, 34 HR, 114 RBI), 2B Steve Blanton (.288, 35 HR, 119 RBI) and youngsters 1B Pedro Castillo (25 HR) and CF Michael Sleigh (24 HR). New Orleans ended a streak of four straight sub-70 win campaigns by winning 70 games, 1B Rick Flynn (.310, 44 HR, 107 RBI) carrying the offensive load, Miami struggled through another underwhelming season to finish 69-93. Final Standings Atlantic Division Boston 93-69* New York 89-73 Philadelphia 76-86 Washington 70-92 Baltimore 68-94 Central Division Chicago 98-64* Indianapolis 94-68* St. Louis 78-84 Cleveland 68-94 Detroit 65-97 Southeast Division Atlanta 97-65* Charlotte 87-75 Tampa Bay 86-76 New Orleans 70-92 Miami 69-93