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#461 |
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Hall Of Famer
Join Date: Apr 2008
Posts: 2,464
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Pastime Baseball League ![]() PENNANT WATCH! Sept. 29, 2011 ![]() Late-Inning Hero-ics New York scores 11 runs in 7th, 8th to take first place from Louisville NEW YORK -- For six innings, it was everything pennant-race baseball should be. Then it crashed around the Louisville Racers.
The New York Heroes scored six runs in the bottom of the 7th, and another five runs in the bottom of the 8th for a 14-4 win in the opener of their season-closing four-game set against Louisville, putting New York in first place by a game. After a week of chaos and criticism of the suspensions of aces Jim McCormick and Roy Oswalt, it was time to decide it on the field. Edinson Volquez (15-9, 3.30) started for Louisville and retired leadoff man Fielder Jones before surrendering a single to Dick Higham, a double to Roger Connor and a two-run triple to Jesse Burkett. Irish Meusel then doubled to score Burkett and the New York crowd was rocking. Louisville's Joe Kelley led off the second with a long home run to right center off Heroes starter Harry Howell (11-9, 4.02) to make it 3-1. The pitchers settled in after that, Volquez escaping a bases loaded jam in the third by getting Jim Viox to pop up to second and striking out David Wright, whose disappointing season continues. Howell walked two in the fifth and with two outs Billy Southworth skied one to center that Fielder Jones simply dropped. Heinie Peitz scored while Willard Marshall stopped at third and Southworth pulled into second, the lead trimmed to 3-2. On the eighth pitch of Hardy Richardson's at bat, he bounced one to short that Ed McKean muffed, allowing Peitz and Marshall to score and giving Louisville a 4-3 lead. But the good times for Louisville ended soon after. Irish Meusel threw out Lefty Marr at the plate in the 6th, trying to score on a Hideki Matsui single. Volquez had retired seven in a row when the bottom of the seventh began, and the wheels began to come off. Jones singled, as did Higham, moving Jones to third. Roger Connor flew out deep to right, letting Jones tag to score, tying the game at 4. Volquez was done as Jeff Tesreau came in to relieve him. He walked Jesse Burkett, then allowed an infield single to Meusel to load the bases. He then hit Pat Mullin with the first pitch he threw him, forcing in a run and giving New York a 5-4 lead. Jim Viox then roped a 2-run single, scoring Burkett and Meusel to make it 7-4. Wright struck out again, but hopes of minimizing the damage were dashed when Ed McKean lashed a 2-run double down the third base line to make it 9-4. Tesreau's horrific effort was done, as Danys Baez came in to strike out Fielder Jones to end the inning. Howell escaped trouble in the top of the 8th, and New York went back to work in the bottom of the ninth, adding runs on a 2-run homer from Pat Mullin and a RBI hits from Hughie Jennings - pinch hitting fo David Wright - and Ed McKean. "This first one was big," said McKean - who drove in three on the night - after the game. "We wanted the driver's seat, and now we're in it." |
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#462 |
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Hall Of Famer
Join Date: Apr 2008
Location: Elk Twp. NJ
Posts: 6,763
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Bib,Big win for New York.Now,just one win in the final 3 games ensures a tie and (presumably) a one game playoff.
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#463 |
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Hall Of Famer
Join Date: Apr 2008
Posts: 2,464
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Yeah, a tie would bring a one-game playoff to decide it. Isn't there an issue with tiebreakers in the game, though, or did the patch fix that? Never been down this road.
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#464 |
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Hall Of Famer
Join Date: Apr 2008
Location: Elk Twp. NJ
Posts: 6,763
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No your Ok as long as you only want a one game playoff,in order to get a best of 3,you'd have to edit the schedule and add two games.
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#465 |
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Hall Of Famer
Join Date: Apr 2008
Posts: 2,464
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So the game will schedule the 1-game playoff on its own?
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#466 |
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Hall Of Famer
Join Date: Apr 2008
Posts: 2,464
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Pastime Baseball League ![]() PENNANT WATCH! Sept. 30, 2011 ![]() Higham the Highlight Star catcher drives in game-winner; Heroes assured of at least tie for division NEW YORK -- The pressure is all on Louisville.
In a see-saw battle that saw the visiting Racers come all the way back from a 5-1 deficit, it was New York catcher Dick Higham who played hero for the Heroes, driving in David Wright with the eventual winning run in a 7-6 victory that put New York ahead by two games with two remaining. Neither starter fared well. The Heroes' Bill Drake allowed 6 runs over 6 1/3 while Racers starter Shawn Chacon surrendered 6 runs - 5 earned - on 11 hits over 5 1/3. Neither would ultimately figure in the decision. Scoring began in the bottom of the first, when Higham drew a one-out walk. Two batters later, Jesse Burkett ended an 8-pitch at bat with a single to right that enabled a hustling Higham to get to third before Irish Meusel singled him home to put New York in front 1-0. Louisville answered with two outs in the second, when Joe Kelley walked and scored on a double by Lefty Marr. Hideki Matsui then roped a single to right, but Marr surprisingly held at third. It was more surprising how he would score - on a balk by Drake, making it 2-1 Louisville. That's how it would stay until the fourth. With one out, Wright reached on an infield hit. He would score as Hughie Jennings laced a triple into the gap to tie it at 2. Fielder Jones lined deep to right, letting Jennings tag and score to put the Heroes up 3-2. Drake cruised through the fifth, and New York kicked off the bottom of the inning with a double by Burkett. Meusel grounded out, but Burkett moved to third. A Pat Mullin single would drive him home to make it 4-2. Jim Viox singled to put runners on first and second before Wright hammered one that looked like it was going out, only to die on the warning track. Mullin tagged, though, and went to third. It looked as though the inning was over when Jennings hit a routine grounder to third, but Lefty Marr's throw to first was wide and Mullin scored, raising the lead to 5-2. That wrapped scoring in the fifth, and the Racers responded. Drake retired the first two in the sixth before Hardy Richardson singled. Herman Long then belted a two-run homer to right to cut the deficit to 5-4. Chacon retired Higham to start the bottom of the sixth before Roger Connor lined a single to center. Roy Thomas bobbled the ball and Connor alertly took second on the error. John Donaldson would relieve Chacon, who had already thrown 116 pitches. He would strike out Burkett, but Meusel singled to left, scoring Connor and putting New York up 6-4. Matsui led off the top of the 7th with a bloop double down the right field line. With one out, Thomas atoned for his error, grounding a single to right to score Matsui and make it a one-run game again. Willard Marshall then singled as well, moving Thomas to third and ending Drake's night. Allan Sothoron came in and hit the first batter he faced, Billy Southworth, to load the bases. Richardson skied to fairly deep center to score Thomas, tying the game at 6. Herman Long then flew to right to end the threat, though the Racers were now even. With one out, Wright singled in the bottom of the seventh. Jennings flew deep to left center, and an alert Wright - seeing Matsui's erratic track to the ball - went back and tagged from first, sliding safely into second. John Cassidy walked, ending Donaldson's day. Jeff Tesreau relieved him to face Higham, who lined an 0-1 slider into right-center to score Wright with what would prove to be the winning run. Ubaldo Jimenez worked around a 1-out double in the 8th before Sam Weaver came on to close it out. With New York closer Jonathan Papelbon's season over, skipper Pat Moran is just hoping he can cobble something together in the pen. Weaver's last attempt was against Charlotte five days ago, where he got the save despite allowing a run and three hits in 2/3 of an inning. He struck out Thomas before Marshall scalded a double into the gap. Southworth then walked on four pitches. Richardson flew to center, and Marshall tagged up to put the tying run 90 feet away. Moran stayed with Weaver, who struck Herman Long out swinging to end it, and in so doing end Louisville's hopes of a division title for Louisville - at least in 162 games. "Three in a row," Racers skipper Ned Hanlon said after the game. "We've done it before, plenty of times. Now, we just have to do it again." If only it were that easy. |
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#467 |
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Hall Of Famer
Join Date: Apr 2008
Posts: 2,464
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Pastime Baseball League ![]() PENNANT WATCH! Oct. 1, 2011 ![]() First to the Finish Heroes pummel Racers 15-4 in decisive, if anti-climactic, end to race NEW YORK -- In horse racing parlance, the Louisville Racers simply ran out of gas down the stretch. What was a neck and neck battle all season long seemed set for a match race of sorts - four games between New York and Louisville for the division crown. And for the first three games of the duel, the Heroes were Secretariat. Louisville broke down. The New York Heroes won their third consecutive Northern League East Division crown with a 15-4 drubbing of the Racers last night, winning behind last year's Outstanding Pitcher runner-up Bill Byrd. Louisville sent Nig Cuppy out in a must win, and it was a move that baffled many. For Cuppy posted a 7.85 ERA in September, going 1-5. But Louisville's options were limited, particularly with Roy Oswalt shelved. So Cuppy came out with a season's pressure on his shoulder. It ultimately would bury him. New York scored a run in the bottom of the first on an RBI double from Roger Connor. But it was the second - in which they scored six runs, including a three-run homer by Jesse Burkett - that not only knocked Cuppy off the hill, but served to knock the Racers' hopes of the postseason out of their heads. Billy Southworth doubled home a run in the third and scored on a Herman Long single. The Racers had scored one in the top of the second, so at this point had narrowed the score to 7-3. That's as close as it got. New York added a run in the third, a run in the fourth and three more in the fifth to go up 12-4 and never look back. Connor and Burkett each drove in four runs, and every starter had a hit. Tomorrow's season finale now stands as a formality. Would Oswalt have made a difference for Louisville? "Doesn't matter," manager Ned Hanlon said afterward. "That wasn't an option." And so it stands as it has since the PBL's began three years ago: Wichita and New York for the Northern League title. Wichita won the series, and the championship, in 2009. New York ousted Wichita last season before losing the PBL Championship to New Orleans. Wichita wants their title back. New York wants their first. It begins here in New York Tuesday night. |
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#468 |
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Hall Of Famer
Join Date: Apr 2008
Location: Elk Twp. NJ
Posts: 6,763
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First off,congratulations to the New York Heroes for pulling off the hat trick,not an easy feat! Secondly,yes.If the teams would have tied for the division lead,the game would have automatically scheduled a one game playoff.
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#469 | |
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Hall Of Famer
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Quote:
FWIW, Louisville won the final game of the series, so New York ends up winning the division by two games. Were Oswalt not suspended, he likely pitches the game Cuppy did. But New York had already won the first two before that would have come into play. MAYBE it would have made it go to the playoff. But we'll never know. Will get to the September wrap-up, then to the postseason. |
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Pastime Baseball League ![]() September Review End of Regular Season
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#471 |
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Hall Of Famer
Join Date: Apr 2008
Location: Elk Twp. NJ
Posts: 6,763
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Wow,I didn't realize how much parity the league had.There's really only three really bad teams,the rest of them with a few breaks here and there could have been right in it.Nostradamus time: First off,Wichita will shock NY and move onto the championship series to face off with LA,where the Idols will easily win the championship.
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We're All Wednesday Aren't We? WAWAW |
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#472 | |
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Hall Of Famer
Join Date: Apr 2008
Posts: 2,464
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2009 6 below .450 2010 3 below .450 (and one at .451) 2011 3 below .450 I think Wichita takes out New York. Rube Waddell's pitching great, and the insertion of Johnny Schmitz (10-2) into the rotation in August has been a godsend. I have no idea out west, though I'm inclined to agree Los Angeles will knock off Orlando. But can a team with only the 6th ranked (out of 8) pitching staff actually go on to win the whole thing? That's what LA will be asked to do. But their offense is a monster. |
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Hall Of Famer
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Posts: 2,464
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Pastime Baseball League ![]() September Review End of Regular Season Stats (cont.) NORTHERN LEAGUE FINAL LEADERS
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#474 |
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Hall Of Famer
Join Date: Jul 2004
Location: Sydney, NSW, Australia
Posts: 9,037
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Fantastic rivalry between NY and Wichita. Would be nice to see the Heroes go all the way this season.
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#475 |
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Hall Of Famer
Join Date: Apr 2008
Posts: 2,464
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Yeah, I probably haven't played up that rivalry as much as I should. Three years of PBL history, three times they meet for the Northern League title.
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#476 |
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Hall Of Famer
Join Date: Apr 2008
Posts: 2,464
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Pastime Baseball League ![]() September Review (cont.) Northern League Report The regular season is over, and with the best pennant race in the Pastime Baseball League's three-year history complete the final month of the year was the PBL's most thrilling September to date. The race between New York and Louisville was covered in detail for the month, so there's not much else to recap there. The Jim McCormick and Roy Oswalt suspensions were obviously the story of the league, but the interesting byproduct is that rather than turning their contempt to each other, the teams seemed to both turn anger toward the Philadelphia Ringers, who were involved in both brawls. For the Heroes, Roger Connor (.331-25-112) was clutch all month, but the real offensive production came from Jesse Burkett (.321-16-96) - who hit .377, slugging .632 with 14 doubles for the month - and Irish Meusel (.283-14-75) - who hit .330 and slugged .616. Five hitters topped .300 for the month, and the only starter who didn't top .272 was David Wright (.228-17-80), who hit .222 and nobody seems to get what's wrong. The loss of closer Jonathan Papelbon (4-6, 3.56, 27 SV)to tendinitis was tough, and Frank Killen (22-6, 3.04) and Bill Drake (11-11, 4.88) weren't up to their usual standards. But in the end, the Heroes pulled it out. Joe Kelley (.272-17-80) and Hardy Richardson (.246-18-79) each had a strong month, each banging six homers and topping 20 RBI. Richardson was the key, hitting more than 100 points higher than his season average, at .350. The loss of Dan Brouthers (.285-30-98) Sept. 18 to a back strain was a savage blow. Kelley moved to first, and Hideki Matsui hit .304 after entering the lineup to take Kelley's spot in left, but Brouthers is the team's only legit threat, and his injury couldn't have come at a worse time. Edinson Volquez went 4-1 with a 2.76 ERA down the stretch, but that was offset by Nig Cuppy's disasterous 1-5, 7.85 month. The further the Philadelphia Ringers fell out of the race, the more they seemed to mail it in. They went 10-16 in September, and John Anderson and Ned Williamson were the only batters to top .250 for the month. Charley Jones hit .202, while Jonny Gomes hit .165 and Peanuts Lowrey hit .198 among others. On the hill, Satchel Paige went 4-1 with a 3.12 ERA to finish strong in his worst season of his career (14-13, 4.37). For Charlotte, the look is ahead. The month was a downer, going 12-15 and being unable to escape the cellar. But the hope lies in the strong finishes of many of their bats and the evolution of several players, led by Mark Reynolds (.316-22-83), whose average was far beyond what anyone expected. John Beckwith (.284-18-81) will lose out on the Rookie of the Year, but that's a testament to Stan Musial and Eddie Waitkus moreso than his own play. On the hill, the excitement starts with Matt Cain (10-7, 3.51) , who recovered from elbow surgery and finished strong, going 4-1 with a 1.88 ERA in September. In the west, Wichita had little to worry about in September. The Indianapolis Engines took the first two games of a four-game set in Wichita, threatening to make a final push. But Wichita won the final two of the series to end that, and take their third consecutive division crown. Wichita was last in the Northern League in homers, hitting only 116 on the season. In fact, a player who didn't even join them until June 4 - Jay Gibbons - led the team with 18. Gibbons is a perfect example of Wichita's seemingly magical touch. Every move, no matter how unconventional or against the grain, has worked. Gibbons was .242/.336/.419 for Los Angeles. He'd hit 10 homers, and Wichita felt he'd blossom amidst their high OBP machine offense. Sure enough, he hit .338/.413/.604 with Wichita. Pitching is strong right now. Johnny Schmitz posted a 1.86 ERA in September, while Al Orth went 5-0 with a 2.42 and Rube Waddell posted a 3.38, striking out more than a batter an inning with a 1.13 WHIP. These guys are ready to go. The Indianapolis Engines gave it a good run, a 16-11 September allowing their fans to toy with a dramatic run. Jake Beckley (.356-17-106) won the batting title, running off a 25-game hitting streak and batting .374 in September. But it was the outstanding rookie Stan Musial (.299-29-118) who led the Engines' surge in September, rapping 9 homers while driving in 27 on the month, hitting .318. The bullpen of Oscar Villareal, Victor Zambrano, Ferdie Schupp and Joakim Soria posted a collective 1.91 ERA in September. The Chicago Hitmen played .500 ball over the final 56 games. They developed the possible Rookie of the Year in Eddie Waitkus (.295-27-107) - though he's expected to lose out to Musial. Joe Bush (8-9, 2.97) and Howie Pollet (14-11, 3.96) seem ready to be solid pieces of the rotation. The good news ends there. Virtually everyone else took a step back. Babe Ruth (.258-11-58) didn't develop the plate patience the team hoped would catapult him forward, while Albert Pujols (.259-18-76) regressed. Adam Dunn and Johan Santana went down for the season, while Cy Young lost 15 games despite a solid 3.61 ERA, though he too was shelved. The disaster that is Sacramento ended with an 11-17 September and the Stingers losing 90+ games for the second time in three years. Alabama, Chicago and Las Vegas are the three other teams that have yet to have a winning season. They scored the fewest runs and allowed the most. They can't afford to mangle this draft. AWARDS Player of the Week 9/5 3B Mark Reynolds - Charlotte Cougars 9/12 LF Irish Meusel - New York Heroes 9/19 CF Stan Musial - Indianapolis Engines 9/26 SS Troy Tulowitzski - Chicago Hitmen Batter of the Month LF Jesse Burkett - New York Heroes Pitcher of the Month SP Al Orth - Wichita Brigade Rookie of the Month 1B Eddie Waitkus - Chicago Hitmen |
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#477 |
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Hall Of Famer
Join Date: Apr 2008
Location: Elk Twp. NJ
Posts: 6,763
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The way Sac-Town is going,they may be the PBL's version of the Phillies,who between 1919 and 1948 had exactly 0 winning seasons.At least they were consistent!
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#478 | |
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Hall Of Famer
Join Date: Apr 2008
Posts: 2,464
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Quote:
They've never pitched well in three years, but their offense has gotten progressively worse. George Hall was the Northern League's first Outstanding Hitter and MVP. He hit .353 with 51 homers and 126 RBI in his first year. Last year, he was hurt a lot and had 13 homers, hitting .252. This year, he bounced back to 28 homers and 82 RBI, but still only hit .252. Ginger Beaumont is their only consistent bat. So now they need pitching and hitting. Oh yeah, they also made the most errors in baseball (123). |
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#479 | |
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Hall Of Famer
Join Date: Apr 2008
Location: Elk Twp. NJ
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__________________
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#480 | |
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Hall Of Famer
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