ISLANDIAN PRO ALLIANCE (RUTHLANDIA and TYCOBBIA BASEBALL UNIONS)

[MadBum]

Originally Posted by Eugene Church

If anyone else is interested in a history update, let me know what you want me to cover and I'll give it a try.

I'd be very interested, simply because this thread looks great but going through however many pages there are doesn't sound like something I could go through very quickly. I'd like to see an overall league history and a look at the all-time greats, so I could get a sense of who are the Yankees and who are the Royals of this universe.

[Eugene Church]

Originally Posted by MadBum

I'd be very interested, simply because this thread looks great but going through however many pages there are doesn't sound like something I could go through very quickly. I'd like to see an overall league history and a look at the all-time greats, so I could get a sense of who are the Yankees and who are the Royals of this universe.

Good suggestion.

I don't think I would want to go back and read the entire thread either.

I'll recap the league history at the end of this season and also cover the all-time great players and teams.

[Eugene Church]

The Islandian Times
Wednesday, June 25, 2025

2025 IPA All-Star Game

Burkhalter Homers Twice, RU Stars Win 8-4
At Central Park Stadium in Tuckanarra, the visiting Ruthlandian Stars rapped three homers to rock the Tycobbian Stars 8-4 and snapped a four-game losing streak in the annual affair... but the TU Stars still hold a big lead in the series overall with 18 wins in the 25 games... LF Lil Hoss Burkhalter (Wynnamac) smacked two into the stands and was voted the game's Most Valuable Player.

It was a seesaw game with the RU Stars taking a 3-1 after six innings, but Tycobbia stunned them on 1B Marty Blake's (White River) 3-run blast to take the lead 4-3 in the last of the seventh... but Ruthlandia retaliated with a 4-run eighth, highlighted by Burkhalter's 2-run shot... that gave the RU Stars a 5-4 edge... later in the frame RF Leon Bourque (Belle Plaine) made it 7-4 with a 2-run double... Burkhalter completed the scoring with a singleton in the top of the ninth... 3B Todd Nasso (Taranto) homered in the sixth for the RU Stars and LF Pat Webb (Rolling Hills) hammered one for the TU Stars in the sixth for their first run in the game.

Ruthlandia outhit Tycobbia 12 to 8... Les Patterson (Sligo) got the victory despite blowing the save... Patterson surrendered Blake's homer... Ben Garvik (Hillsboro) was the victim of the big uprising in the top of the eighth and suffered the defeat... Ruthlandia's starter Billy Chapel (Stoner) put on quite a show by striking out 4 of the 6 batters he faced in the first two innings.

[Eugene Church]

The Islandian Times
Monday, September 22, 2025

2025 Islandian Pro Alliance Summary

Tight Races, Two Surprises In IPA
There were tight races all over the IPA this year... Three of the races were decided on the last day of the season and four others came down to the last week... only one team had a cakewalk and that was the Rolling Hills Reds, who won the TU West by 10 games.

No real surprises in the Ruthlandian divisions this season... the only repeat winner was the Middlefield Roosters, who captured the RU West for the third year in a row... The Roosters edged Stoner by a game and Sligo by 2... Crystal Lake won in the RU South by 3 games over Waleska... The Wynnamac Sundowners nipped Belle Plaine by a game in the RU East... Last year's division champ and Pro Cup runner-up Sugar Valley wound up fourth, 9 games out... Far Mountain trailed Ancona going into the last week, but came out ahead of the Red Elephants by 3 games with a late-season spurt.

Over in Tycobbia, there were two huge upsets... Fairfax came out of nowhere and claimed the TU North by 3 games over White River, who was looking to three-peat... The Frogs were fifth in 2024... Five rookies were the catalysts that made winners out of the South Fork Stallions in the TU East... They whipped two powerful teams to do it: Tuckanarra, who won the Pro Cup the last two seasons, and the strong Midway Wolves... South Fork was fifth last season, but won by 3 over the Blue Jays and 6 better than the Wolves... The other two division winners were Rolling Hills in the TU West and Ginza in the TU South... Both the Reds and Ninjas were expected to hotly contend for the pennants... Rolling Hills rolled past Kenwood by 10 games and Ginza won a dogfight by a single game over tough Turon.

The IPA Pro Cup playoffs will begin in three days on Thursday... In the Ruthlandian Union Far Mountain will open on the road in Crystal Lake and Middlefield will travel to Wynnamac... In Tycobbia, South Fork will host Rolling Hills and Ginza will entertain Fairfax... All series will be best-of-seven... Teams with the best season record will get the home team advantage.

[Eugene Church]

The Islandian Times
Monday, September 22, 2025

2025 Ruthlandian North Finals Standings

[Eugene Church]

The Islandian Times
Wednesday, September 22, 2025

2025 Ruthlandian North Final Recap

FM Redhawks Win By 3 Over Ancona and 5 Over Valmara
It was a year-long battle between Far Mountain and Ancona in the Ruthlandian North... the Redhawks sneaked by in the last week to take the Red Elephants by 3 games... defending champ Valmara slipped to third this year, 5 games behind and up-and-coming Ranford was fourth 7 games back... in the last week and a half Far Mountain got hot with a 7-3 record, while Ancona slumped to 4-6.

Far Mountain (91-63) had to win it almost entirely with its pitching... manager Alex Groveland's offense was mediocre to modest at best... the club leader was 1B Johnny Becker with an ordinary .271 BA... but the mound staff was superb with a 2.98 team ERA (3rd), led by three fine starters, anchored by Jeff Cooper (18-11 1.85), All-Star Karl Franz (21-6 3.10) and All-Star Jakob Wagner (16-14 2.67)... Cooper was the top hurler in the IPA with a 1.85 ERA... defensively the Redhawks were pretty good with a .975 FA (6th)... this was Far Mountain first pennant since 2016... overall the Redhawks have won the RU North 9 times and captured 3 Pro Cups.

The runner-up Ancona Red Elephants (88-66) had a very good season despite losing superstar LF Kenny Willard for almost all of the season... 4-time All-Star and 4-time Gold Glover Willard only played in 9 games... Willard's .307 career average, 30 homers and 100 RBIs a year were a huge loss... even without him Ancona could put runs on the scoreboard, ranking second in batting with a .270 mark, second in scoring and pretty fair in power with 108 homers (14th)... and they were solid on the hill with a 3.38 team ERA (14th)... with average defense, ranking 15th with a .973 FA... at the plate Ancona was sparked by 1B Alekos Kotas (.325/24/113/81), All-Star RF Donnie Lewis (.325/9/71/115) and All-Star 3B Todd Nasso (.277/20/87/106)... manager Manny Mickens had two fine starters with Hal Holmes (18-7 2.75) and Vince Arndt (18-16 2.98) and a strong closer with Kenny Nikas (4-2) with 23 saves and an outstanding 1.25 ERA.

The third place Valmara Vipers (86-68) won back-to-back flags in the RU North the previous two years, but couldn't whip the Redhawks and Red Elephants this year... nonetheless it was a good season for Jet Kazmarek, who had a quality pitching rotation with two strong starters: Clem Carmouche (16-12 2.84) and Billy Ray (17-15 2.99)... and capable number three and four starters with Pavel Volkov (19-11 3.40) and Johnny Vasylenko (18-16 3.84)... in the bullpen was one of the best Chris Phillips (7-5) with 26 saves and a superb 1.71 ERA... Overall the Viper pitchers compiled an impressive 3.06 team ERA (6th)... Valmara didn't hit especially well with a .245 BA (23rd), but they ranked 5th in scoring and 7th in home runs with 121... CF Teddy Szymanski (.313/25/103/94) and LF Sonny Oliver (.292/26/90/75) led the way.

The Ranford Bulls (84-70) wound up fourth this season, trailing champ Far Mountain by 7 games... it was a great season for manager Rick Fargnoli, considering they were cellar-dwellers the last two years... super pitching did it... the Bulls posted an excellent 2.99 ERA (4th) with four standout starters: 33-year-old vet Scotty Simmons (16-10 2.73) and three youngsters Angelo Coppolo (20-9 2.75), Sam Hart (17-11 3.17) and Jimmy Travis (15-15 2.60)... Travis topped the IPA with 327 strikeouts... Ranford struggled a bit in the bullpen... Willie Walters had 29 saves and a 2.45 ERA, but was 3-10 record-wise... three rookies paced the Bulls at the plate: All-Star C Kyle Hunt (.336/13/71/75), 1B Elton Graff (.305/7/60/75) and SS Terry Kerr (.283/15/69/62)... Ranford hit well with a .257 BA (7th) and 111 roundtrippers (11th), but were only 19th in scoring.

Kevin McPhail's Kilkenny Cats (75-79) are just an average team that ended up in the fifth spot in the RU North this year, trailing first place Far Mountain by 16 games... the Cats were tied with Taranto... top pitchers were Kyle Ferguson (20-11 3.14), Dave Whitaker (15-16 3.15) and Greg Noland (15-16 3.92)... Noland was obtained in a pre-season trade with Rocky Rapids... McPhail needs bullpen help... LF Michael Winter (.299/11/87/75) and C Irish O'Dwyer (.284/12/80/76) were the offensive leaders... Kilkenny has never made the playoffs.

It was a lackluster year for the Taranto Tars (75-79) and skipper Tommaso Lazzorda... they haven't graced the postseason since 2019 and half the time have been a second-division club... playing in the small confines of the Palazzo di Sport is a blessing for the hitters and a hex on the hurlers... Taranto topped the RU with a .272 BA and in scoring, but the opposing hitters thrived, too... the Tars team ERA was 4.26 (31st)... heading up the batting order were All-Star 1B Denny Zaffino (.314/25/91/80), All-Star LF Nickie Tomasiewicz (.297/17/90/109) and 2B Greg Murphy (.289/12/82/89)... Lazzorda had two solid starters in Alfredo Barsotti (22-15 3.66) and Johnny Sakelaris (14-13 3.53).

The Glasco A's (61-93) had an awful season and finished up 30 games out... Charles Darby's Athletics haven't been in the playoffs for the last 22 years and it's not likely to happen again any time soon... Glasco has average hitting, poor pitching and average defense... Darby's best talent are his son, All-Star 3B Eddie Darby (.325/12/85/94) and 1B Garris Aiken (.280/22/97/89)... the Athletics only pitcher of note is closer Rusty McIntosh (6-4), who posted 23 saves and an impressive 1.43 ERA.

Pulling up the rear in the RU North was the hapless LaGrange Sports (58-96), 33 games back in last place... it's been 17 seasons since the Sports were in the postseason... manager Otto Kronvath has no offense (31st), not much defense (.969 FA), but has decent pitching with a 3.50 ERA (18th)... youngsters Mike York (14-17 2.48) and Niles Wooten (14-22 3.30) deserved better... rookie RF Dunstan Lane was the only bright spot in the line-up with a .324 BA, 9 homers and 52 RBIs.

[Eugene Church]

The Islandian Times
Monday, September 22, 2025

2025 Ruthlandian South Final Standings

[Eugene Church]

The Islandian Times
Monday, September 22, 2025

2025 Ruthlandian South Final Recap

CL Regains RU South, Nips Waleska
After a year's absence the Crystal Lake Crushers are back on top of the Ruthlandian South. They went into September trailing by 2 and came out of it leading by 3 over defending champion Waleska, who held the spot for a season. This was Crystal Lake's fourth division title in six years. The Crushers have also garnered two Pro Cups in that time... The Crushers got hot the last month, going 15-5 to the Westerers 10-10. Nobody else was close. It was strictly a two-team race. Belair Beach was a distant 19 games behind in third place and San Dimas and Valka deadlocked for the fourth spot, 22 games off the pace. Only two teams had winning records in one of the weaker IPA divisions.

Crystal Lake manager Herman "Baby" George was known for his longball prowess in his industrial league days... George hit more amateur homers than anybody in his illustrious career... but people forget he was a very capable pitcher as well... George started off on the mound and hit so well, he moved to the outfield and became a legend... strange as it may seem, the Crystal Lake Crushers (92-62) have never been a good hitting team, but they certainly do well on the mound with a 2.96 team ERA (2nd) and are above-average defensively (.975 FA)... the
Crushers rotation features two superstuds: Duncan Welch (21-14 2.39) and Derek Taylor (22-12 2.87), along with two quality arms: youngsters Rick Gilliam (7-2 3.30) and T. D. Burnham (13-8 3.90)... George's bullpen is strong, too, led by Keith Hunter (3-4), who notched 36 saves and a terrific 1.54 ERA... Hunter led the RU in saves and was second-best in the IPA to Fairfax's Manny Hunsinger with 37... the Crushers are just an average hitting club... top bats were CF Herm Taylor (.294/5/84/81) and SS Pete Hicks (.273/10/68/110)... RF Augie Marshall batted only .230, but delivered 93 RBIs and 14 homers... Pro Cup winners usually have to hit the ball, but Crystal Lake has disproved that theory on several occasions in 2022 and 2024... the Crushers will be one of the favorites this year.

The Waleska Westerners (89-65) are actually a better, all-around club than Crystal Lake... skipper McGraw Johnson's ball team was 6th in scoring, fields well (.975 FA) and has one of the better staffs in the RU with a 3.04 ERA (5th)... two veterans Sammy Grimaldi (21-15 2.65) and Doug Watts (21-8 3.14) were 20-game winners... Chet McNeil (18-11 3.32) and Pete Herrmann (15-19 3.11) were solid, too... Jarred Laclair (6-4) led a strong bullpen with 30 saves and a standout 1.80 ERA... CF Roy Hobbs (.305/20/77/90), LF Loco Dillinger (.310/35/106/88) and 1B Glenn Christian (.294/12/71/82) sparked the batting attack.

For the ninth straight season Marty Pedroza's Belair Beach Sunbirds (73-81) have missed the playoffs... the 'Birds were third, but were 8 games under .500 and 19 games back in the race... not much offense (.249 BA), near the bottom... fair pitching (3.56 ERA)... and poor defense (.967 FA)... Jaime Pedroza (17-13 3.06) led the staff... All-Star Kees Draeger (.328/32/98/97) had a great season and carried the offense almost single-handedly.

It's been 17 years since the San Dimas Rancheros (70-84) claimed their only division title... the Rancheros wound up fourth, tied with Valka, 22 games out of first... a very similar team to Belair Beach... lack of scoring (29th)... no power (30th)... decent pitching (3.64 ERA)... and poor fielding (.969 FA)... All-Star Shannon White (18-14 3.05) and Keir Wells (17-17 2.93) were two fine hurlers... rookie phenom and All-Star 1B Lloyd Kelly had a marvelous season, easily leading the IPA with a .382 BA... though he had only 11 homers and 57 runs batted in... it's hard to drive in runs when nobody is on base... CF Ray Ford also made the All-Star team and chalked up good numbers with a .307 BA, 19 home runs, 83 RBIs and 85 runs.

Andrei Kokk's Valka Blackhawks (70-84) haven't been in the playoffs since 2017... pretty much in the same ballpark as Belair Beach and San Dimas except they had a little more power with 96 homers (23rd)... the Blackhawks batted .246 (22nd), but were 9th in scoring... posted a 3.79 ERA (26th) and a poor .969 fielding average... top pitchers were both 24, starter Adam Aru (17-12 3.01) and closer Kermo Kabin (7-3 1.41)... leading the way offensively were RF Tonu Viks (.275/20/95/84) and All-Star SS Olari Ojastu (.292/16/75/83).

The sixth-place Grand City Cybercats dipped into the second division of the RU South for the first time since 2017, falling 23 games behind Crystal Lake... manager Wade Joslin's pitching fell off considerably with a 4.25 team ERA (30th)... however, the Cybercats were 7th in scoring... 4th with a .259 BA... and 24th with 94 homers... and strong defensively with a .977 FA... two vets LF Ricky Rich (.338/12/85/87) and All-Star RF Nick Baldini (.305/9 HR/72/87) paced the club at the plate.

Only 5 times in its history has the St. John Crusaders (67-87) had a winning team... it's been 13 seasons since the club made the Pro Cup playoffs... this year Skinny Kisecawchuk's team wound up seventh, 25 games back... this is the fourth year in a row St. John has finished near the bottom... Kisecawchuk had better-than-average pitching with a 3.34 team ERA (12th), but little else... Jeremy Vincent (13-15 2.65) is a very capable pitcher, along with Don Baillie (17-18 3.28), both suffer from a lack of run support... SS Vinny Teicher (.282/14/78) and LF Joey Daigrepont (.291/16/75/63) are the Crusaders best bats.

Times are hard for the Ole Perfesser Stacy Engel... his Claxton Diamonds (54-100) spiraled down to the RU South basement this year... Engel's pitching was atrocious with a 4.33 ERA (32nd)... and his offense was not much better... Max Jung (16-20 3.23) is his only quality pitcher... and LF George McKay (.287/25/74/97) is his only quality bat... however, CF K. C. Moerdijk hammered 26 out of the park, scored 96 runs and batted in 77, but hit just .238 for average.

[Eugene Church]

The Islandian Times
Monday, September 22, 2025

2025 Ruthlandian East Final Standings

[Eugene Church]

The Islandian Times
Monday, September 22, 2025

2025 Ruthlandian East Final Recap

Sundowners 2nd-Half Surge Clips Muskies By 1
Matt Donnelly's club was 7 games behind with four good teams ahead of Wynnamac at the All-Star break and no one predicting that the Sundowners could come back and win it - but they did with a sensational second-half 36-12 surge to sweep past everybody in the Ruthlandian East... Belle Plaine couldn't match that pace and lost out by one game... the Beechwood Bobcats also turned it on the the second half and moved up to third place, trailing by 4 games... last year's division champ Sugar Valley leveled off after mid-season and only played .500 ball, falling to fourth place and 9 games off the pace... fifth-place Marston stayed close to the top until August, but then fizzled out badly, finishing 12 games out.

The Wynnamac Sundowners (92-62) were a perfect blend of excellent pitching and fairly good offense... manager Matt Donnelly had a splendid rotation, perhaps the best in the IPA... four fine starters were all under 3.00 in ERA and had two 23-game winners... Lon Marshall (23-10 2.85), 39-year-old Jerry Meeks (23-12 2.66), Jimmy Nichols (16-12 2.65) and Meeks' 21-year-old son Jason Meeks (14-7 2.54) formed a great rotation... Jason had a strong season despite missing almost 7 weeks due to injury... this is the only time, that a father and son were part of the starting rotation... Arroyo Grande closer Jason Patrick and his son Poochie were on the staff at the same time in 2023 and 2024, but were not as successful as the Meeks... at the plate the Sundowners had a trio of reliable bats: All-Star LF Lil Hoss Burkhalter (.289/29/108/77), 2B Liam Cadbury (.300/13/58/111) and 1B Pete Simmons (.301/8/72/71)... look for Wynnamac to do well in the postseason... the Sundowners have won the RU East 4 times now and one Pro Cup... they were the IPA champ in 2008 and last won the division in 2022.

The first-half leader Belle Plaine Musketeers (91-63) went into a summer funk in August and September, just barely playing .500 down the stretch... skipper Dave Torregrossa just didn't have the starters to keep up... Mitch Graves (19-13 3.53), Lucien Record (18-11 4.25), Rick Lafleur (17-13 3.64) and Johnny Davenport (12-17 3.41) couldn't match Wynnamac, but the Muskies had a great relief corps, led by Fabian Moreau (3-2 1.19), Tiny Ladrieux (4-4 1.63) and Mac Shaw (7-0 0.33)... Moreau and Ladrieux shared the closer role with 21 and 10 saves respectively... Torregrossa had lots of good bats, who did their part, led by C Derek Roman (.322/12/91), All-Star RF Leon Bourque (.274/17/65/85), All-Star 3B Tyler Verret (.264/17/65/85), CF Noel Norbert (.271/5/52/97), SS Slick Hammill (.283/8/80/74) and 2B Tony Polochak (.313/16/80)... if the Musketeers can improve its starting rotation, the future bodes well in Belle Plaine.

The third-place Beechwood Bobcats (88-66) ended up in the RU East first division for the 11th successive season... the only time the Bobcats have been in the playoffs was in 2020... at year's end, they were the second-best team, only 4 games out of first... manager Bret George possesses a very good starting threesome: vets Ken DeGraw (20-11 2.58), Frank Mullins (20-13 2.95) and rookie Maury Patterson (12-7 2.10), who came aboard at mid-year... number four starter Marty Panko (15-9 4.01) was also a reliable starter... sparking the offense were all-time IPA superstar CF Vic Valenti (.271/27/103/94) and 1B Eric Townsend (.292/23/100/67).

Last year's division champion Sugar Valley (83-71) came in fourth this season, 9 games behind Wynnamac... it was Gibby Bobkins' staff that let him down this year, mainly his starters... his usually reliable offense didn't do well, either...only star 1B Dean Woods and All-Star SS Jan Kessinger had a good years... Woods with 33 homers, 129 RBIs and a .329 BA... Woods paced the RU with in RBIs and was second to Waleska's Loco Dillinger in home runs... Dillinger went deep 35 times... Kessinger batted .329 with 6 homers, 61 RBIs and 83 runs... long-time ace Benny McConnell was the only dependable starter with a 21-7 record and a 2.57 ERA... the other three starters had ERAs above 4.00... the bullpen was fine with closer Dallas Casey (6-5) standing out with 31 saves and a 2.13 ERA.

Johnny Walters' Marston Nine (80-74) was second last year and was expected to seriously challenge this year... the Nine did contend until August, but went into an 18-30 spiral and plunged to fifth in the standings, losing out by 12 games... losing their ace Ronald Schmitt for almost the entire season was a severe loss... Schmitt only made 5 starts in April before going out with back problems... he was 2-0 with a 2.34 ERA at the time... still Marston managed to hang in the race... they were only 2 games behind Belle Plaine at the All-Star game and in second place... Walters had three dependable starters: Warren Tate (18-12 3.42), Anson Thomas (15-18 3.09) and Wayne Taylor (16-17 3.46)... Schmitt was a critical loss... superstar CF Russ Woodward (.298/32/101/98) and 25-year vet SS Danny Church (.288/6/59/98) were Marston's best bats, along with 1B Mel Hawkins (.242/27/105/68)... looks for the Nine to come back strong next year, if Schmitt recovers.

The sixth-place Cold Creek Catamounts (76-78) improved this year and almost had a winning season, winding up just two games under the .500 mark and 16 games out... Mike Butler (19-16 3.00) was manager Trip Holmes' best hurler... 1B Steve Daniels (.308/16/62/87) and LF Carl Glick (.284/20/72/94) were the offensive leaders.

After surprisingly winning the pennant in 2023, the Elnora All-Stars (68-86) stumbled badly for the second year in a row ... Sam Malone's club was seventh again and 20 games behind the leader... Elnora has two solid pitchers with All-Star Lucien Vachon (16-15 2.27) and Will Hamilton (16-16 2.98) and a fine bullpen with a 2.41 ERA (5th), but has trouble scoring (24th)... 3B Jeff Matthews (.307/12/81/72) is Malone's best bat... other contributors are RF Travis Glass with 24 homers, 76 RBIs and 89 runs scored, but he batted only .242... 1B Benny Cortazzo hit 18 roundtrippers and batted in 87 runs, while hitting just .254 for average.

Once-mighty Eastshore (63-91) was the pride of the IPA a few seasons ago, but since its glory years from 2016 to 2021 when the Elegants copped 2 Pro Cups and 4 back-to-back RU East pennants, manager Killer Brewster's crew has been a second-division club... descending down to the cellar this year, 29 games behind... last in hitting (.231 BA) and near the bottom in pitching with a 3.86 team ERA (27th)... long-time ace Melvin Key fell to 11-21 this year with a 4.06 ERA... Randy Boone was Eastshore's top pitcher with a 16-18 mark and a solid 3.04 ERA... CF Robbie Foster (.280/1/54/84) was the Elegants only decent bat... RF Ivan Borkowski topped the team with 28 homers and 87 RBIs, but batted only .236... veteran standout 2B Gerry Garner had a down year at age 33 with a .237 BA, but he did drive in 70 runs with 14 homers and scored 79 runs.

[Eugene Church]

The Islandian Times
Monday, September 22, 2025

2025 Ruthlandian West Final Standings

[Eugene Church]

The Islandian Times
Monday, September 22, 2025

2025 Ruthlandian West Final Recap

Roosters 3-Repeat In RU West, Stars and Rovers Close
Three teams fought tooth-and-nail all season long in the Ruthlandian West. In one of the closest races in the IPA the defending division champion Middlefield Roosters came on strong in September to edge the Stoner Stars by one game and the Sligo Rovers by two games. This was Middlefield's third pennant in a row... Going into the late stages of the season the Rovers had a slight one game lead over the Stars and were up by two over the Roosters. Middlefield captured the flag with a 13-7 stretch run, while Stoner went 11-9 and Sligo slipped to 9-11. The fourth place Forest City Lumberjacks closed with a second-half rush, but flopped with a 7-13 mark in September, yet finished only 6 games behind. At one point in the last weeks the 'Jacks narrowed the gap to just two games. Forest City was sixth and 10 games off the pace at mid-season... five clubs finished .500 or better... fifth-place Volusia broken even for the year and was only 8 games back of Middlefield.

The Middlefield Roosters (85-69) won handily in 2023 and 2024, but not this year... Bailey Norcross' Roosters just barely won by the skin of their beaks... the lost of superstar 1B Allan Stewart was huge... Stewart suffered a fractured skull when he was hit in the head and will miss a year... Stewart played in only 54 games, hit .282 with 11 homers and 34 RBIs... Danny Denver (23-7 3.31) had a super season to lead the mound corps... Frank Dean (16-17 3.03) and Tyrus Cobb (11-14 3.20) didn't have winning records, but did pitch well... closer Waylon Hillman (5-7) had a very good year with 33 saves and a 1.92 ERA... the Roosters again led the RU in homers with 170... 6 of them had 10 or more roundtrippers... vet RF Chuck Larkin paced the club with 26 home runs and 97 RBIs, but batted just .235... All-Star C Rod Buckley topped the team with a .313 BA and had 16 homers... CF Tom Daniels hit 18 home runs and scored 105 times, but batted only .249... LF Floyd McClellan collected 24 home runs, drove in 76 and hit .275... SS Wes Gore and 3B Stu Butterworth hit 18 homers each, but batted .222 and .241.

The Stoner Stars (84-70) have a great pitching staff with a fabulous 2.70 ERA, second best in IPA history to Crystal Lake's 2.66 in 2022... manager Benny Stern had three veterans and a rookie as starters: All-Star Billy Chapel (23-11 2.46), Tommy Tuckman (14-11 3.29), Charley Norton (15-16 2.82) and rookie Raul Hidalgo (14-16 2.30)... the Stars bullpen was a fine one, too... headed up by All-Star closer Joel Shepard (7-4), who racked up 31 saves and a 2.28 ERA... however, Stoner had lousy defense with a .965 FA, the worst in the IPA... and lousy hitting, too, with a .249 BA (17th) and were 26th in scoring runs... 1B Fletch Fowler (.301/15/86/58), CF Al Rispone (.289/15/64/95) and RF Kevin Fisher (.271/8/63/89) provided what little offense the Stars had.

Manager Eddie Keys and his Sligo Rovers (83-71) could have used more offense to back up its fine pitching... the Rovers hit only ..244 (25th) and ranked 23rd in scoring... but on the hill they were very good with a 3.28 team ERA (9th)... 6-time All-Star Les Patterson (22-14 2.64) turned in another excellent season with help from Sam Tate (19-13 2.19)... number three starter Gabe Thomas (18-16 3.61) had a solid season as well... closer Milt Flanagan registered 26 saves with a 2.04 ERA, but was a poor 0-6 record-wise... LF Biff Blauer (.285/13/68/84) was the only effective hitter... Blauer ranked first in the RU with 134 walks and second in the IPA... topped only by San Alejo's Lou Browning, who chalked up 151.

The fourth place Forest City Lumberjacks (79-75) were a mystery... they ran hot-and-cold through the year with a great April (17-6), strong July (17-12) and a marvelous August (19-9), but not so good otherwise... still manager Rob Jackson's crew had a good shot at the pennant until the September sag, winding up 6 games off the pace... the 'Jacks batted .258 (5th), were 2nd in homers with 139 and rated 3rd in scoring, while they were just average on the hill with a 3.50 ERA (17th)... 3B Rusty Hood (.270/26/97/80) led the attack with help from LF Ryan Ray (.277/26/68/71), RF Luc St. Germain (.293/12/75/88) and 2B Jackie Jackson (.302/10/69/93)... Forest City's top hurlers were Stephen Phillips (18-12 2.37) and Doug Haynes (18-18 3.26).

The fifth-place Volusia Vigilantes (77-77) ended up even for the season, trailing by 8 games... manager Alfonso Feliz has a so-so team... the V's top performers were solid veteran ace Sixto Moreno (17-11 3.07) and rookie closer Val Cameron with 31 saves, 2.35 ERA and a 5-8 record... star CF Joe DeLucca, a career .320 hitter, dipped below the .300 mark for the second time in his 13 seasons... he hit .295 as a rookie... DeLucca batted only .270 with only 7 homers and 64 runs batted in... still he was Volusia's most productive bat... that's how bad the offense was.

The sixth spot in the RU West standings went to the Rocky Rapids Snappers (73-81), who wound up 12 games back... skipper Ryan Noland could use a lot of everything... better hitting, more power, better pitching and improved defense... his youngest son, 20-year-old Walter Noland, was a standout with a 21-12 mark and a strong 2.76 ERA... vet Don Chaney pitched much better than his won-lost record... Chaney moved closer to the 300-win milestone with a 15-17 mark and a fine 2.92 ERA... the 36-year-old Chaney is 295-223 in his 16 years in the IPA... offensively it was 7-time All-Star 2B Paul Shelton leading the way with 25 homers, 97 RBIs, 78 runs and a .266 BA... 1B Angelo Nardone added 16 homers, 77 RBIs and a .274 BA... two of Noland's sons, CF Tiger Noland (.307/10/57/60) and SS Tommy Noland (.270/10/47/61) also chipped in... a fourth son Cyrus Noland (.203/4/12/12) is a backup outfielder.

The Colfax Blasters (70-84) escaped the division basement, but not by much... Clem Rogers' ball club finished seventh, 15 games behind Middlefield... Colfax is just plain bad and near the bottom on the hill and at the plate... Rogers only has two decent players in RF Glen Smith (.308/13/92/64) and 1B Doug Kirkwood (.278/17/80/79).

For the fifth season in succession the Fort Benton Defenders (66-88) came in last, but manager Robbie Brooks' team did show some improvement... they were only 19 games out, usually they are at least 30 games back... three youngsters looked good on the mound... starters Paul Flowers (9-14 2.91) and Augie Marquis (8-9 3.20), along with closer Kurt Cobb (6-9), who notched 19 saves and an impressive 2.04 ERA... rookie 2B Jerome Cox (.281/17/65/66) and vet LF Stan Saunders (.292/10/46/71) led the mediocre offense.

[Eugene Church]

The Islandian Times
Monday, September 22, 2025

2025 Tycobbian North Final Standings

[Eugene Church]

The Islandian Times
Monday, September 22, 2025

2025 Tycobbian North Final Recap

Frogs Leap Past Rascals In TU North
Fairfax leapfrogged past defending champ White River in July and maintained a good lead until the final week when the Rascals cut it down to 3 games... Oxford and Hartsdale were the other two clubs with winning records in the division... the Red Caps came in third, 8 games off the pace and the Hellcats were fourth, trailing by 9 games.

Strong pitching carried manager Dane Wesner's Fairfax Frogs (87-67) to the title this year... This is the fourth time the Frogs have won the TU North, last capturing it a dozen years ago in 2013... All-Star Kevin Meeks (21-12 2.26), Ken Hill (17-16 2.84) and rookie Darien Russell (19-13 2.97) stood tall on the hill... however Walt Smith (23-13 4.24) was the biggest winner... and closer Manny Hunsinger (2-5) led the IPA with 37 saves and a super 1.83 ERA... the Frogs were not much with the bats, hitting only .251 (20th)... top bats were CF Alton Dale (.293/13/57/83) and RF Johnny Eichhorn (.269/18/93/65).

Last year's TU North winner White River (84-70) possessed good hitting and scoring with a .260 BA (6th)... the Rascals ranked 8th in runs... on the mound manager Mick Cronyn was better-than-average with a 3.28 team ERA (8th)... All-Star 1B Marty Blake again led the club with a .306 BA, 25 homers, 92 RBIs and 106 runs... Blake is a 6-time All-Star and a career .332 batter with 512 homers... fine RF Kenneth Kent chipped in with 109 RBIs, 17 roundtrippers and a .283 BA... other solid contributors were LF Jim Abrams (.303/12/82/70) and CF Hal Littleton (.297/8/56/88)... 3B Sammy Tucker (.300/3/43/67) missed the last third of the season due to injury... splendid Paul Sardini (18-14 1.96) and Ron Hendrix (17-12 3.34) topped the twirlers... twins Don French (13-12 4.08) and Jon French (17-15 4.53) struggled this season.

The Oxford Red Caps (79-75) were the runner-up last year, but slipped to third this year... All-Star LF Dennis Hartwig was brilliant again with a .353 BA, 24 homers, 109 RBIs, 111 runs and 33 SB... at age 23 Hartwig is averaging a lofty .353 for his 3 years in the league... RF Barney Burns also stood out with a .284 BA, 125 walks, 5 homers, 70 RBIs and 95 runs scored... skipper Mack Spencer didn't have much punch after them on his line-up card... 10-year vet Tony Mack (23-14 3.20) had his best season and last year's TU top rookie Carmine Scalise (16-12 3.41) dipped in production from 22-10 and 2.71... Spencer found himself a fine closer... Kurt Jelesko, a very reliable middle reliever for four years, found a niche as closer with 10 saves and a 1.41 ERA after taking over the spot in August... Jelesko was 7-0 for the year.

Fourth place Hartsdale (78-76) is pretty much an average team... Zim Donner is at the helm of the Hellcats... his best performer was All-Star 1B Johnny Scott (.301/27/92/108)... CF Ken Wessel (.279/17/84/78) added some offense, too... closer Tommy Klein (4-5) sparkled with 36 saves, which led the Tycobbian Union and was second-best in the IPA... Donner's best starter was 41-year-old Bobo Boisseau... the 15-year vet posted a 19-14 mark with a 4.00 ERA.

Winding up fifth for the second year in a row were Rudy Tanussa's Mahaska Haymakers (70-84)... they were 17 games back in the race... the Haymakers have some talent... All-Stars Sammy Kafelnikov (18-13 2.94) and C Bucky O'Brian (.299/16/75/69) were the team leaders with help from standout RF Travis Tuttle (.302/34/96/77) and rookie CF Pasha Yablonski (.305/3/42/91), who stole 55 bases and was ranked third in the TU and the IPA... Hillsboro's Biggy Washington was the IPA and TU leader with 76 thefts... 26-year-old rookie James Allington stood out with a 13-8 record and a fine 3.03 ERA after joining the team in June.

The rest of the TU North are just plain bad... the North Hills Hawks (61-93) were sixth and 26 games out... manager Masaichi Okawa has little talent... his best are only ordinary... Kerry Hoffman (15-13 3.85) was the best pitcher, while the most productive hitters were RF Al Bowden (.251/10/65/81) and 1B Lou Hooper (.309/10/51/68).

Next-to-last were the Blue Lake Blue Sox (60-94). who finished 27 games back of the Fairfax Frogs... Cobb Tyson's best pitchers were 36-year-old starter Kip Day and 25-year-old closer Chris Landry (6-5), who chalked up 23 saves and an impressive 1.81 ERA... the Blue Sox best bats belonged to CF Gil Willis (.265/19/85/85), rookie LF Douglas Pitts (.293/15/60/62), 1B Randy Milne (.317/4/28/70) and 43-year-old 3B Sal Avallone (.323/2/55/51).

The last place Luxora Zorros (50-104) were terrible, but they didn't set the record for the most losses in a season... that mark still rests with the North Hills Hawks, who were 47-107 in 2019... the Z's wound up 37 games behind Fairfax... 38-year-old Tiago Torres (11-23 3.53) and 21-year-old closer Toby White (3-5 2.14) were skipper Cristo Viamonte's only credible hurlers... White saved 20 games... at the plate rookie LF Kevin Hanley hit 20 homers, batted in 75 runs, scored 88 and hit .286... Hanley also stole 34 bases... C Jim Thorpe Chandler, a 3-time All-Star in his career, had a good year with a .282 average, 16 roundtrippers, 69 RBIs and 81 runs with 15 SB... and 2B Julio Canseco made the All-Star team, hitting .319 for the year with 6 homers, 51 RBIs and scored 76 runs.

[Eugene Church]

The Islandian Times
Monday, September 22, 2025

2025 Tycobbian South Final Standings

[Eugene Church]

The Islandian Times
Monday, September 22, 2025

2025 Tycobbian South Final Recap

Ninjas Dethrone Suns In TU South
Four teams contested most of the year for the Tycobbian South... the Ginza Ninjas took charge in July and prevailed by one game over the tough Turon Typhoons, 5 better than last year's champ Arroyo Grande Suns and 6 up on the Southport Sun Sox... the Ninjas ran off a terrific 19-10 July, while the other three dipped below .500 for the month... Ginza then held off last-minute challenges to capture the division flag in one of the strongest divisions in the IPA... 5 clubs finished above .500 and 2 more barely missed winning seasons with 76-78 marks... This was the Ninjas second title in the last three years.

1st - Ginza Ninjas (93-61)... was second last season, lost by a game in a playoff to Arroyo Grande... pitching (2.98 ERA) and power (146 HR) won it for manager Huroko Uchiyama... top pitchers were All-Star Daniel Ferguson (21-12 1.97), Yutaka Yoshida (20-12 2.82) and Ron Koehler (16-13 3.08)... and number four Yuko Takata (11-11 3.85) was also effective... offense was led by All-Stars 1B Johnny O'Rorke (.309/31/97/89) and C Crash Davis (.310/14/64/82).

2nd - Turon Typhoons (92-62)... one game behind Ninjas... up from fifth last year (75-79)... good turnaround season for manager Whitey Richburn... strong pitching by All-Star Nicky Engstrom (20-9 2.60) and Sal Quattrone (18-11 2.85) led the way... Engstrom has been brilliant in his 16 seasons with a 340-158 record with a remarkable lifetime 2.29 ERA... 36-year-old Engstrom will be gunning for Cody Burg's IPA record of 369 victories in the next two years... Quattrone is only 22 with 2 years' experience... Bobby Byrd (15-14 3.59) was a good number three starter... Turon may have found a closer in the second half of the year... Gil Donahue (6-4 2.19) saved 15 games after taking over for vet Merle Studebaker (7-7 3.36)... the Typhoons played very well down the stretch, but fell a game short... 1B Michael Page carried the offense with 31 homers, 90 runs batted in and 80 runs scored... Page batted .266 for average... he didn't have much help.

3rd - Arroyo Grande Suns (88-66)... 5 GB... defending division champ... 89-66 last season... high-powered offense... led TU with .277 BA and 170 homers... top-scoring team, too... leading the attack were All-Stars SS Andy Pearson (.343/18/74/97) and 1B Rusty Vizcarra (.296/33/130/98)... Vizcarra paced the IPA in RBIs... manager Cyclone Cobb has a wealth of quality bats in his batting order: RF Buddy Bechtel (.292/30/93/97), LF Eduardo Villanueva (.315/23/85/123) and C Gary Troxell (.257/34/93/76)... lack of pitching cost them the crown this year (4.15 ERA-26th)... much of the pitching problem is caused by the short fences in Capet Stadium... the Suns perform much better on the road... they were 41-36 at home and 47-30 out of town... top pitchers were Ernie Matthews (20-17 4.00), Earl O'Reilly (19-9 4.31), Cesar De Leon (19-17 4.25) and Ricky Lemos (17-11 4.78)... closer Steve Sampson (2-3) did his job very well with 34 saves and an impressive 1.93 ERA.

4th - Southport Sun Sox (87-67)... 6 games out... much-improved pitching this year... wound up 7th last season (67-87)... Charley Oscar has three fine starters and a standout closer... 18-year-old All-Star Don Pascioni (18-13 2.94) had a super freshman season... 22-year-old Wiley Wheeler was sensational with a 24-11 record and 3.22 ERA... 6-year vet Al Laclair was solid, too, with a 14-11 mark and 3.28 ERA... in the bullpen All-Star Ronnie Galus posted a 10-3 record with a super 1.00 ERA and he racked up 27 saves... Southport lacked offense, but did find a very promising rookie RF Lorne Evans, who joined the club in July and became a regular by mid-month... Evans slammed 15 homers with 52 RBIs, while batting .311 in 79 games... 23-year-old 3B Timmy Gilbert performed well with a team-high .314 BA and 82 runs.

5th - Colchester Elites (78-76)... 15 games behind... was sixth last year (73-81)... Uncle Robbie Wilbertson needs some bats to contend in the TU South... his mound corps is looking good with Mac Flowers (15-14 2.88), Brian Britt (20-11 3.87) and Brandy Snow (14-20 3.28)... however Flowers went down to injury in September and will be out 7 months... the Elites have a good closer in Cholly Burdette (3-5), who chalked up 23 saves and a fine 1.66 ERA... Colchester's only reliable bats were 1B Steve Burns (.337/17/93/79) and CF Terry Thorsen (.263/17/79/81).

6th tied - San Alejo Montaneros (76-78)... 17 games behind... finished last with a 62-92 record in 2024... the Monties are managed by Alberto Herrera... his club improved on the mound and at the plate this year... San Alejo has good power with 151 home runs (5th) and scores well (4th)... they don't hit well with a .250 BA (25th), but are first in walks... pitching is average with a 3.77 team ERA (16th)... rookie John Kaltenbach (20-11 2.96) led the hill corps with help from Jose Dominguez (17-10 3.86) and Vet Trini Corona (16-17 3.72)... closer Konrad Koch (4-7) had a fine season with 33 saves and a 1.28 ERA... vets RF Lou Browning (.277/26/73/101) and LF Warren Love (.279/31/106/89) were Herrera's top producers... Browning led the IPA with 155 walks, while Love chipped in 105 more... rookie CF Vince Barbieri showed good promise with 21 homers and 75 RBIs in 96 starts... Barbieri batted .265.

6th tied - Summerland Sunsets (76-78)... 17 GB... was third last season (81-73)... manager Will Hackett was very disappointed this year as he thought his Sunsets would be contenders... not so... 19-game winner Sparky DeWey (19-12 3.62) fizzled this year with a 6-8 mark and a 5.28 ERA and lost his roster spot... and Jason Castille dipped from 18-17 to 15-21 this season... however Hackett had a 20-game winner... James Beckworth blossomed this year with a 21-9 record and a 3.21 ERA... Willie Baldwin (6-6 3.16) joined Summerland in late July in a trade with pitching-rich Crystal Lake of the RU... Overall Baldwin was 20-13 with a 3.05 ERA... Hackett is optimistic about the future with a solid core of hitters: 1B Mandu Purula (.334/22/86/94), SS Greg Proctor (.292/21/119/65) and All-Star CF Clell Renshaw (.263/11/68/96)... C Archie Shanahan drove in 90 runs and hit 13 home runs, but batted only .242.

8th - Cape Coral Hurricanes (55-99)... 38 GB... 4th last year (80-74)... it was a terrible season for Huggy Miller's Hurricanes... last season they had broken a string of five straight years in seventh place and looked forward to 2025... but his bats went on the fritz and the pitching was the pits... the 'Canes batted only .234 (32nd), were near the bottom in homers (29th) and last in runs scored... the starting rotation was atrocious with a 4.55 ERA (27th)... only one starter Karl Zenger (14-20 2.95) had a good year... the other starters' ERAs were sky-high at 4.35, 4.90 and 5.79... however the bullpen was fine, led by Flapper Bird, who totaled 24 saves with an excellent 1.45 ERA, but an 0-5 record... offense was almost non-existent... 1B Neil Ribbens hit .311 with 16 homers, but had only 59 RBIs... no one else came close to his numbers.

[Eugene Church]

The Islandian Times
Monday, September 22, 2025

2025 Tycobbian East Final Standings

[Eugene Church]

The Islandian Times
Monday, September 22, 2025

2025 Tycobbian East Final Recap

South Fork Shocks Tucks, Wins TU East
It was a shocker in the Tycobbian East this season... The South Fork Stallions have always been perennial also-rans... 23 years without a pennant... no postseason since 2002... after a sixth-place finish last season, no one expected it to change in 2025 either... most everybody thought it be pretty much the same this year... everybody but the Stallions... They stunned the heavily-favored Tuckanarra Blue Jays with a fantastic second-half run to win the TU East by 3 games... the strong Midway Wolves came in third and 6 games back with Hillsboro fourth in the standings, 10 games out of first... six teams wound up .500 or better in the very strong TU East.

1st - South Fork Stallions (96-58)... sixth last year (69-85)... Deloche "Lips" Leon had a lot to talk about this year as his South Fork Stallions won more games than anybody in the IPA... an influx of 5 rookies made the difference... they started off slowly and trailed Midway by 6 games in May and 5 games in June... Pro Cup champ Tuckanarra took over and led them by 9 in July... but the Stallions went an astounding 44-13 the next two months to go up by 2 games over the Blue Jays by September... South Fork is a well-balanced ball club with a .261 BA (5th), 3rd in scoring and 12th with 136 roundtrippers... on the mound they had a 3.14 team ERA (4th)... they are just average defensively with a .971 FA... Gary Price (22-14 2.95) and rookie Bill Massey (21-10 2.99) sparked the rotation with help from two more freshmen Jim Tettelbach (17-12 3.63) and Ozz Gatsby (19-9 3.73)... solid vet LF Patric Giles led the team with 28 homers, 94 RBIs and 114 runs, while hitting .291... 1B Teddy Nixon added a .307 BA, 10 home runs, 64 RBIs and 77 runs... rookies SS Kurt Pankewitz (.267/11/68/66) and 3B Mark Barker (.287/7/45/53) also contributed with their bats and gloves... South Fork's triumph was no fluke... Tuckanarra and Midway never gave up, they were just outplayed.

2nd - Tuckanarra Blue Jays (93-61)... coming into the season the magnificent Blue Jays were favored to win a third straight TU East and a third straight Pro Cup and they might have, if it wasn't for South Fork... manager Carlton "Lefty" Stevens had everybody back and was ready and primed to 3-peat... the Blue Jays hit very well with a .263 BA (4th), scored well (4th-tied), had good power with 148 homers (6th) and handled the gloves well with a very good .976 FA (6th)... All-Star 3B Koora Nawajuk (.313/28/111/101) had a break-out season... standout 1B Lynn Starr (.302/30/97/109) and All-Star RF Danny Redd (.306/7/41/117) performed admirably, too... the mound corps did their job well, too... Quinn Starr (26-13 2.33) led the IPA with 26 wins... Croc Wedgedale (17-11 3.03) and Lynn Starr (17-16 3.03) were very effective, too... in the bullpen closer Archie Desmond (6-2) stood out with 28 saves and a microscopic 1.10 ERA... how good was Tuckanarra?... the Blue Jays were tied with Rolling Hills and Ginza for second place with 93 victories.

3rd - Midway Wolves (90-64)... runner-up in 2024, lost out by one game... this year Midway was a powerhouse, too, but overshadowed just a little bit by South Fork and Tuckanarra... Cochise Chandler's crew batted .268 (2nd), were second in scoring and hit 138 homers (11th)... the Wolves had a fine 3.32 team ERA (9th) and were tied for 9th in fielding with a .975 percentage... Midway had it all, too... they were just unlucky to play in the strongest division in the IPA... Chandler's line-up is packed with fine hitters: All-Star 3B Rusty Graves (.321/24/85/98), All-Star SS Rob Gigler (.296/19/73/100), RF Chitto Chandler (.287/15/97/83), CF Johnny Lee (.312/18/67/97) and 1B Cal Hunter (.285/14/72/70)... anchoring the mound staff were Motega Wolf (20-10 3.29) and Bobby Dorignac (18-15 2.69)... Luka Abromowitz (20-11 3.83) and Alberto Toledo (13-10 3.40) were quality number three and four starters.

4th - Hillsboro Blazers (88-66)... In recent years Hillsboro has had to play third and fourth fiddle to the TU East powers, winding up fourth last year with an 87-67 record... nonetheless they are a pretty fair ball club with solid pitching (3.23 ERA-6th) and good power (153 HR/4th), but play poor defense (.968 FA)... All-Star Ben Garvik (22-13 2.77) had a super year... manager Rawhide Marshall had an effective rotation with veterans Tom Edgar (17-14 3.10), Pat Buettner (18-14 3.60) and Yank Yoland (15-13 3.59)... his bullpen was excellent, led by All-Star Gregg Hughes (6-7), who registered 33 saves and chalked up a strong 1.48 ERA... the Blazers featured some good bats, too, paced by 1B Larry Guichard (.308/15/82/85), SS Jason DiMucci (.300/5/84/82), CF Biggy Washington (.272/14/48/103), who led the IPA with 76 SB, All-Star RF Tommy O'Hara (.280/34/91/93) and 2B Matt Lalonde (.300/9/47/76).

5th - Ozarka Naturals (86-68)... 10 GB... improved from 67-87 and 6th place last season... skipper Joe Mac Carney easily has the best fifth-place team in the IPA... the Nats hit well for average with a .265 (3rd), but they don't hit with power, only 83 homers (31st) and they are only average in offense (16th)... on the hill Ozarka is better-than-average with a 3.48 team ERA (14th)... Defensively they are the best in the IPA with a superb .980 FA... top mound performers were starters Jeb Mashburn (17-18 2.83), Howard Hutch (18-13 3.74), who topped the IPA with 320 strikeouts in 282 innings and Wayne Gates (16-11 3.84), plus super closer Josh Carpenter (6-5) with 32 saves and an impressive 1.53 ERA... at the plate 1B George Jenkins was outstanding with a .349 BA, 27 HR, 99 RBIs and 96 runs... SS James Couch also chipped in with 10 homers, 76 RBIs and scored 96 runs, while batting .274.

6th - High Mesa Cowboys (77-77)... 19 games behind... the Cowpokes were 5th last year with a 73-81 mark... Frisky Franks' bunch don't hit much for average (.249-27th), but do hit with power... High Mesa led the IPA with 199 homers, helped quite a bit by its small stadium... they can score runs (7th)... pitching is pretty decent... a 4.13 team ERA is not bad at Queen Ranch Stadium, where the dimensions are 312 and 306 down the lines and 350 in the power alleys... veteran Ronald Ward paced the pitchers with a 20-15 record and a 3.91 ERA... rookie Emil Kaltenborn (6-6 3.32) showed well after joining the club in late July... vet closer Pete Woods (3-3) enjoyed a very nice season with 25 saves and a great 2.04 ERA... IPA icon and superstar 1B Jack Elliott again led High Mesa at the plate with 41 homers, 94 RBIs and 108 runs, while batting .300... his 41 home runs were the most in the IPA this season... it's the 8th time Elliott has led the TU in roundtrippers... in 13 seasons Elliott has 676 homers and a .353 career batting average... Elliott's average is the best in IPA history... he is second to Phil Gravelli in home runs... 41-year-old Gravelli has 726 in 25 years... RF Bill Andrews (.268 BA) and CF Joe Hamilton (.259) also swing power bats for the Cowboys... Andrews had 35 homers and 102 RBIs and Hamilton had 33 homers and 73 RBIs.

7th - Red Bluff Red Sox (64-90)... 32 games off the pace... were cellar-dwellers last season with a 66-88 mark... good offense, lousy pitching... batted .253 (18th), but had good power with 158 homers (3rd)... 9th in scoring... pitching poor with 4.59 team ERA (30th)... top bats were RF Corbett Brooks with a .288 BA, 32 homers, 100 RBIs and 91 runs... and 40-year-old star 3B James Mack .291 BA, 27 HR, 96 RBI and 84 runs... C Jim Schubert (.251/8/43/55) made the All-Star team for the fourth time this season... Schubert fielded .994 and threw out 43% of the runners... 14-year vet Rodger Wright (14-11 4.28) was the most effective pitcher manager Bucky Frizzell had.

8th - East Point Panthers (53-101) 43 GB... surprising 4th last season with 73-81 record... pitching totally collapsed this year with a 5.47 team ERA... only young closer J. D. McDermott (7-3) had a good year... McDermott saved 23 games and posted a 2.48 ERA... fair offense led by LF Jerry Thomas (.298/18/96/77) and RF Kendo Aoki (.278/24/85/82)... Panthers finished last for the 13th time in history... last appeared in the playoffs in 2008 when they won the division... also made the postseason in 2002 when the top four teams in each division qualified.

[Eugene Church]

The Islandian Times
Monday, September 22, 2025

2025 Tycobbian East Final Standings

[Eugene Church]

The Islandian Times
Monday, September 22, 2025

2025 Tycobbian West Final Recap

RH Reds Run Away With TU West
Not much of a pennant race this year in the Tycobbian West... champ Rolling Hills had a little competition till mid-year, then ran away with it, beating last year's division winner Kenwood by 10 games... the Reds and Wildcats were the only teams with winning records... Arlon and Bay St. Clair tied for third place, but were 19 games behind... the Buccaneers really bombed in the second half, after hanging close at the All-Star break, trailing Rolling Hills by 4 games.

1st - Rolling Hills Reds (93-61)... were a close second last season, losing out by just 2 games (88-66) to Kenwood... Matty Christianson had wonderful pitching with a 2.86 ERA, second to Stoner's IPA best (2.70)... vets All-Star Sal Jordan (23-13 2.65) and Errol Gaudet (17-14 2.86) topped the staff with lots of help from Christianson's two sons, McGraw Christianson (20-14 2.99) and Joey Christianson (12-5 2.53)... however Joey went out with rotator problems in mid-July and will be lost for the postseason... a huge loss for the Reds... offensively the Reds were fairly good with a .258 BA (8th), ranking 10th in scoring, but with little power... they hit 98 homers (28th)... All-Star Pat Webb led a solid offense with 21 homers, 129 RBIs and a .315 BA... Webb was number two in the TU in RBIs... Christianson's third son, 1B Billy Christianson batted .332 with 13 home runs, 63 RBIs and scored 89 runs... SS Tony Ptacek added a .299 BA, 11 HRs and 94 RBIs... and CF Skip Greene hit .279 with 11 homers, 54 RBIs and 114 runs... look for Rolling Hills to do well in the Pro Cup playoffs.

2nd - Kenwood Wildcats (83-71) 10 GB... won the pennant last season with a 90-64 mark... started off slowly because ace Jody Gentry missed April and May with a bad back... the Wildcats also played without one of their best bats RF Babe Hankins for a month in May... however, manager Aaron Hankins got things going after the All-Star break, but the Wildcats had dug too deep of a hole to get out of it... by then they trailed Rolling Hills by 11 games... Kenwood played well in the second half, led by great relief pitching and solid starters... the bullpen was the best in the IPA with a 1.95 ERA... closer Glenn Kennedy (4-1) was magnificent with 32 saves and a gaudy 0.65 ERA... Johnny Shaw (23-13 3.42) and Thomas Norman (18-11 3.55) paced the starters... Gentry was only 9-12, but had a fine 2.50 ERA... Hankins led the bats with a .300 BA, 19 homers and 85 RBIs... vet SS Lee Sullivan hit 18 home runs, scored 86 runs, batted .268 with 68 RBIs... 1B Johnny Ostendorf hit .276 with 9 homers, 70 runs batted in and scored 85 runs...the Wildcats ranked near the bottom with a .245 BA (30th) and in runs scored (26th), but did hit with some power, smacking 129 (13th).

3rd tied - Bay St. Clair Buccaneers (74-80) 19 GB... came in third last season, only 4 games off the pace... this year the Bucs stayed in the race until mid-year (41-32), but then faltered badly (33-48)... lackluster starting pitching and poor defense (.968 FA) were Guy Rondre's prime problems... they got Woody Crawford in July from Far Mountain of the RU to shore up the staff for the stretch run... Crawford was 16-16 with a 3.36 ERA overall and 5-7 with a 3.37 ERA for Bay St. Clair... only super ace Greg Moss (25-11 1.91) did the job and he did it superbly with a 1.91 ERA, best in the TU and second best in the IPA to Far Mountain's Jeff Cooper, who posted a 1.85 ERA... but the Buccaneers had a very strong bullpen with a 2.37 ERA (5th), headed up by closer Ray McClendon (4-3) with 23 saves and a 2.06 ERA... the Buc bats tapered off quite a bit in the second half... leading the way was 1B Jerry Todd (.334/25/87/73), who had another fine year... All-Star RF Don Smithers dipped in the second half, but still batted .295 with 19 homers and 82 RBIs... vet CF Bill Howell hit .290 and scored 96 runs... vet 2B Bud Walker had a subpar season with a .258 BA, but he did score 92 runs.

3rd tied - Arlon Champions (74-80) 19 GB... improved from 8th place last year (68-86)... manager Gary Louis had mediocre offense (.246 BA-28th), poor starting pitching (4.13 ERA-21st) and average defense with a .973 FA (14th-tied)... however Arlon hit with some pop... they had 141 roundtrippers (9th)... the Champs best performers were All-Star CF Carlos Quintana with 35 homers, 93 RBIs, 91 runs and a .262 BA, All-Star 2B Ryan Hicks with 18 homers, 63 RBIs, 85 runs and a .277 BA and reliable vet 3B Johnny Madigan with 3 homers, 58 RBIs, 86 runs and a .296 mark... SS Karl Lindquist had 21 homers and 81 RBIs, but batted only .247... 1B Artie Anderson collected 19 home runs and 82 RBIs, but hit only .245.

5th - LaClaire Lynx (72-82) 21 GB... finished 7th last year with a 69-85 record... the Lynx have never made the playoffs... have only made the first division 4 times in history... have had only 5 winning seasons in 25 years... manager Maka Bardinda has some offense, but not a lot of pitching... the Lynx batted .257 (9th), ranked 6th in scoring and posted 128 homers (14th)... they had a 3.89 team ERA (21st) and poor defense (.969 FA)... top performers were rookie starter Pat Kovacs (9-9 2.23), along with superstar SS Flash Devlin (.297/25/100/119)... this was Devlin's first time to hit under the .300 mark in his 13 years in the league... lifetime Devlin carries a strong .328 BA and has 426 homers... 2B Norm Petitjean also stood out with 19 homers and 101 RBIs, while batting .282... 1B Jess Swain led the club with a .315 BA... Swain drove in 86 runs, scored 80 and popped 15 homers... vet CF Andy McGee scored 97 runs, had 13 homers and a .275 BA.

6th - Chicopee Braves (71-83)... 22 GB... posted the same record last year and was also 6th in the standings... have never made the postseason... made first division only 7 times in history... manager Harry Fleetfoot has one of the worst defensive team in the IPA with a .967 FA... Stoner of the RU West is the worst with a .965 FA... rookie Bob Ferguson sparked the starting rotation with a 16-12 record and a fine 2.88 ERA... closer Paul Quinn was 10-4 with 10 saves and a 2.52 ERA... 9-year vet LF Dominick DiCaprio (.276/25/88/79) had another solid season... the Braves don't hit much, but do have some power with 139 homers (10th)... CF Vinny Anderson led the team with 26 homers and 95 runs, but hit only .256 for average... 1B Gary Burchfield cracked 25 and drove in 68 runs, while batting .271.

7th - Denton City Redbirds (70-84) 23 GB... wound up 4th last year with 75-79 record... Ford Whiteman's club missed the playoffs again this year for the 12 consecutive season... not a lot of talent in Denton City... young hurlers Phil Cooper (15-12 4.03) and George Hudson (18-18 4.00) are the top starters... closer Johnny Duncan got 31 saves with a 2.62 ERA, but was just 1-6 in wins and losses... vet 1B Don Timmons (.279/21/88/86) and C Wes McMahon (.275/20/74/50) topped the lineup... rookie LF Don Cain led the team with a .323 BA in a platoon role... Cain started 100 games with 5 homers, 49 RBIs and scored 53 times.

8th - Bayview Vikings (66-88) 27 G B... dropped from fifth last year (71-83)... this year for the 9th year in a row skipper Walter Johanssen has failed to make the postseason... his pitching was terrible with a 4.87 team ERA (31st)... however at the plate the Viks had some punch with 143 home runs (8th) and were 12th in scoring runs... they hit for a .252 BA (19th)... and were an average club defensively with a .973 FA... Don Griggs (14-14 3.44) was the only starter with less than a 5.00 ERA... closer Gunnar Haagensen (3-4) did a capable job with 24 saves and a 2.33 ERA... longtime star CF Davey Krueger hit only .233 at age 37, but was still productive with 32 roundtrippers and 97 RBIs... 25-year-old RF Knut Valen had 27 home runs and 96 RBIs, while batting .251... 36-year-old 1B Rafael Garza led the team with a .317 average... Garza hit 14 homers, scored 81 runs and batted in 61... Garza has hit .309 in his 14-year career... All-Star 2B Tommy Shore batted .281 with 14 home runs, 63 RBIs and 69 runs.