A brief history of the Australia-New Zealand Baseball League (AUNZBL, 2019-2119)

[Izz]

2049/2050 Season - March

Notable Performances

1 Mar: Mildren brought up career hit #3200 in style against the Thunder, slamming a line drive 441 feet over straightaway centre for a 2-run HR. He even managed a wink at the cameras as he rounded 3rd. Newcastle went on to lose the game 5-4.

3 Mar: Alan Sneddon’s remarkable season continued. Today he collected 5 hits for the 2nd time in his major-league career, going 5-6 with 2 doubles in Whangarei’s 9-2 win over Central Coast. He also stole bag #61 for the year, putting him equal top on the AUNZBL season record board.

4 Mar: The Sluggers went down 5-1 to the Thunder, but in the process Sneddon stole a base, his 62nd of the season. He now owned the single season stolen bases record.

4 Mar: Rob Lane went 5-5, with 3 doubles and a HR, to see Melbourne beat the Cowboys 9-5. He scored 4 runs and drove in 3 runners.

7 Mar: Ismael Aguirre won PotW. His stats: .424/.444/.788, 14-33, 7 runs, 3 doubles, 3HR, 10RBI, 2BB.

11 Mar: Kununurra weren’t doing so good, today dropping their 10th straight. They would break the slump the following night.

12 Mar: The Blue Sox beat Melbourne 10-2 to clinch the Southern Division. In the win, Juan Hernandez went 5-5, including a triple.

13 Mar: The Venom handed Whangarei an 11-6 hiding, and in so doing claimed the Coastal Division pennant.

13 Mar: Angelo Spear had won his last 5 starts. Today he went 6.2 innings, giving up 7 hits, 3 walks and 2 earned runs. He fanned 8, and the Thunder whipped Brisbane 13-2, giving Spear his 6th consecutive win and 20th of the season.

14 Mar: Sean Carr went .560/.645/1.080 over the last 7 days on his way to PotW. His 14-25 included 2 doubles, 1 triple and 3HR. He scored 8 runs, drove in 8 and walked 4 times.

14 Mar: Zach Barlow became the latest member of the March 5-hit club, going 5-5 against the Prospects. One of those hits was a triple. Canberra cantered to a 13-6 victory.

17 Mar: Manny Gallo had made a habit of late charges up the HR leaderboard and this year was no exception. On the 16th he hit 2HRs to take the outright lead and today hit another to be the 1st player to 40 in 2049.

21 Mar: Keiran Pickford won the season’s last PotW award with a strong .522/.586/.739 showing. 12-23, 4 runs, 5 doubles, 4RBI, and 4BB.

21 Mar: The Sluggers beat Brisbane 6-2 to claim the NZ, and to add to the celebrations Alan Sneddon scored 2 runs, giving him 137 for the season, a new record. He also stole 2 bases and drew 2 walks.

21 Mar: Carlo Gadsden went 5-6 in Hobart’s 4-3 extra-inning loss to Melbourne.

22 Mar: Brisbane and Wellington both secured wildcard berths with victories today. The Bandits were still in with a shot at the East-West pennant, only 1 game back from the Thunder with 2 games to play.

24 Mar: It took until the last day of the regular season for the Thunder to win the East-West, but win it they did, defeating Perth 4-2.

Notable Injuries

6 Mar: Beau Riseley (.282/.336/.468, 22HR) wouldn’t be back this season. He’d fractured a rib diving into 2nd for his 34th double of the year.

8 Mar: The Thunder, 1 game behind Brisbane in the East-West, would be without 1B Vic Gerlach (.307/.396/.470, 15HR) for the rest of this season, all the offseason, and probably most of spring training after he ruptured an MCL.

17 Mar: Rob Lane’s (.339/.399/.587, 25HR) season was over thanks to an oblique strain.

Other Notes

18 Mar: In massive news, Canberra’s Rick Clohessy (.295/.322/.524, 38HR), currently 3rd in the HR race, was today found guilty of failing a drug test. He would begin an immediate 80-game suspension. The 28 y/o was not available for comment and Canberra management didn’t have much to say either, though the word ‘disappointed’ was thrown around a fair bit.

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Zachary Woollett (.366/.445/.618, 35HR) won the batting crown, and finished the season also leading the league in SLG, OPS, and wOBA (.444).

Manny Gallo (.308/.350/.553, 43HR), also of Cairns, ended up running away with the HR crown, finishing the season 4 ahead of the field, and the only player to hit more than 40.

Ismael Aguirre (.354/.419/.615, 39HR) finished 2nd to Gallo in the HR standings, but ended up with the most XBH (86), and the most bases (398). He also finished tied for most doubles (42), and recorded 10.0 WAR, 1.1 higher than Woollett. Aguirre was 3rd on the BA board, had 4th-best OBP, 2nd-best SLG, OPS, and wOBA (.419), 2nd-most hits (229), 3rd-most RBI (129), 5th-most runs (106), and 3rd-best ISO (.261). He was the early favourite for SotY.

5 players recorded over 200 hits. Brendon Stennings (.357/.398/.570, 29HR) was top of that list with 233, good enough for the 2nd-best season total of all time. Ismael Aguirre was 2nd (his 229 the 3rd-best season total of all time). Manny Gallo recorded 209, while Wellington duo Christos Hutchinson (.345/.409/.433, 3HR) and Marcos Lopez (.318/.368/.540, 33HR) both recorded 201.

2 players reached the runs-walks double-double. The 1st of those was Alan Sneddon (.325/.481/.444, 5HR), who finished the season with an incredible 165 walks (from 153 games) and 137 runs, both season records. His OBP was also a new season record, eclipsing Young-tae Lee’s 2041 mark. Sneddon ended up with 67 stolen bases, and was only caught stealing 27 times. Amazingly, he only struck out 63 times during the season.

The other player to get the runs-walks double-double was Young-tae Lee (.263/.396/.435, 21HR), who scored exactly 100 runs and walked 113 times. It was the 3rd time in his career he’d achieved the feat and the 1st time since 2041.

Angelo Spear (20-6, 3.61 ERA, 3.95 FIP, 1.12 WHIP) was the only player to record 20 wins. He also threw 252.0 innings, more than any other pitcher.

Jay Cummins (19-12, 3.00 ERA, 3.80 FIP, 1.09 WHIP) lost his last 2 starts to fall agonizingly short of 20 wins, but he was the early pick for HotY. His ERA was 2nd-best, WHIP 3rd-best, H/9 (7.77) 5th-best, IP (249.0) 2nd-best, and WAR (4.8) 2nd-best.

Sterling Dunlop (14-7, 2.59 ERA, 3.16 FIP, 1.04 WHIP) was the statistician’s favourite, but his lack of wins would probably count against him. He did, however, lead the league in ERA, FIP, WHIP, K/9 (8.42), K/BB (5.21), and WAR (6.6). He was 3rd in BB/9 (1.62), and 2nd in strikeouts (198).

The only player to reach 200 Ks, hitting the mark exactly, was Walter Anglesey (18-7, 3.95 ERA, 4.08 FIP, 1.37 WHIP).

Wally Barlow finished the season with 39 saves, best in the league.

Standings, EORS

[Izz]

2049 Division Finals

Game 1 - Wellington Fury vs Central Coast Thunder

All the offense in Game 1 was from the Fury, with every player getting a hit. They only scored in 2 innings, putting on 3 in the 2nd thanks to a 3-run blast from Bryce Rice, and 2 in the 6th. Central Coast only got on the board in the 7th and could only manage 1. Final score: 5-1 Wellington. Ashley Barry (6.2IP, 7H, 1ER, 2BB, 3K), who’d lost 16 during the regular season, got the win, while 20-game winner Angelo Spear (7.0IP, 14H, 5ER, 0BB, 2K) possibly stayed on the mound too long and took the loss.

Game 1 - Whangarei Sluggers vs Brisbane Bandits

Brisbane piled on 6 runs in the 1st 3 innings and that was the game, with Whangarei finally scoring a solitary run in the 9th. Final score: 7-1 Brisbane. Ismael Aguirre, Cong Chaim, and Adam Guiney all homered for the Bandits. Wilson Lara (1.2IP, 5H, 5ER, 2BB, 1K) got bashed out of the game early, while Clint Aitcheson (8.1IP, 4H, 0ER, 1BB, 3K) was pulled in sight of a playoff shutout.

Game 2 - Wellington Fury vs Central Coast Thunder

The Thunder took the early lead, scoring 1 in each of the 1st 2 innings. Wellington came storming back in the 5th, briefly taking the lead thanks to a 3-run Yang-cheng Liang HR, but the Thunder responded in kind, Sterling Bull’s 2-run blast levelling things up. An Isaac Blythe triple drove in Christos Newbold in the bottom of the 6th to give Central Coast a 1-run advantage that they wouldn’t surrender. Final score: 5-4 Thunder. Philip Burton hit a solo HR in the 4th for the Fury, and every Thunder player apart from cleanup hitter Stefan Lock got themselves a hit. Apart from the 3-run HR, Adrian Duggan (7.0IP, 7H, 4ER, 0BB, 6K) was good, and deserved the win. Cameron Worsfold (5.2IP, 11H, 5ER, 0BB, 4K) threw a lot of pitches over the heart of the plate, and was probably lucky not to go for more.

In worrying news for Wellington, LF Leo Sweetman had to be stretchered from the field after colliding headfirst with the wall in the 2nd attempting to make an out.

Game 2 - Whangarei Sluggers vs Brisbane Bandits

Both teams had their chances but struggled to convert them. Both of the Bandits runs came from the longball (Aguirre and Harrison Jackson), while Matt Davidson’s 2-run HR evened things up in the 5th. It took until the 8th for the Sluggers to poke their nose in front, Alan Sneddon leading off the inning with a double, then coming home off Barry Fry’s weak single past 2nd. The Bandits managed 2 runners in the bottom of the 9th, but Aguirre struck out swinging for the fences to end the game. Final score: 3-2 Sluggers. Neither starter got the W or the L. Angelo Spear (6.1IP, 9H, 2ER, 1BB, 6) threw 117 pitches, most of them in trouble, while Brisbane’s Jerry Fitchett (5.1IP, 5H, 2ER, 2BB, 3K) got hooked an inning (and 27 pitches) quicker.

Off Day

29 y/o Leo Sweetman (.293/.370/.442, 7HR in 332PA) had suffered a severe concussion and was being kept in hospital for observation. There was no word on his recovery time.

Game 3 - Wellington Fury vs Central Coast Thunder

Once again Central Coast took an early lead, and went ahead 4-1 in the 4th thanks to a 2-run Stewart Clemmet jack. The Fury immediately took 2 runs off that deficit in the bottom of the inning, then tied the game up in the 6th, forcing Edwin Kerr (5.2IP, 11H, 4ER, 0BB, 8K) out of the game in the process. The scores stayed locked through 9, and 10, until in the bottom of the 11th Yang-cheng Liang got himself a walk-off triple, driving Bryce Rice home, who’d walked to lead off the inning. Final score: 5-4 Fury. Jay Cummins (8.0IP, 5H, 4R, 2ER, 3BB, 7K) showed the levelheadedness and stamina that had him quickly becoming a media favourite, but it was veteran Jeremy Malone who jagged the win, pitching a perfect 11th.

Game 3 - Whangarei Sluggers vs Brisbane Bandits

The Bandits never looked like losing this one, heading into the 7th-inning stretch with a 6-0 lead. Whangarei eked 3 runs back, but could pull off no miracle. Final score: 6-3 Brisbane. Young-tae Lee, Gordon Appleby, and Vince Hudswell all homered for Brisbane. Lance Ralston (6.1IP, 6H, 2ER, 3BB, 2K) got the win, and Roger Mangan (5.0IP, 7H, 3ER, 2BB, 3K) the loss.

Game 4 - Wellington Fury vs Central Coast Thunder

Both pitchers looked settled to begin this one, even though the Fury manufactured a run in the bottom of the 1st. The Thunder evened it up in the 5th, but Wellington immediately got the lead back in the bottom of the inning, and pulled 2 further away in the 6th thanks to a Bryce Rice bomb. Wellington’s bullpen held it down for them, and that was all she wrote for the Thunder in 2049. Final score: 4-1 Fury. Spear (7.1IP, 7H, 4ER, 1BB, 5K) went deep in a losing cause. He’d lost both his 2049 postseason starts. Barry (5.2IP, 6H, 1ER, 0BB, 3K) picked up his 2nd win.

Game 4 - Whangarei Sluggers vs Brisbane Bandits

Whangarei bookended their performance with 3-run innings (1st and 8th) to prove too strong for the Bandits. Aguirre homered in the 1st for Brisbane and Appleby went deep in the 9th, but it was pinch hitter Zachary Pengilly’s bases-loaded double that was the night’s biggest hit. Sneddon (2-4, 2BB) set a new Whangarei playoff record for runs scored, touching down on home base 4 times. Final score: 8-4 Sluggers. Lara (6.0IP, 5H, 2ER, 3BB, 8K) bounced back to record the win, while Aitcheson (6.0IP, 8H, 5ER, 2BB, 5K) took the loss. Yong-jun Chu went 4-5 (all singles), to drive 4 Sluggers home.

Off Day

While the Fury were off to the Preliminary Finals, the mood around their camp was sombre. Leo Sweetman was still in hospital, and while everybody was tight lipped about his situation, it appeared from what little was being said that Sweetman may have suffered brain damage in the collision with the wall.

Game 5 - Whangarei Sluggers vs Brisbane Bandits

Brisbane scored 5 across the 1st 3 innings, Lee and Hudswell contributing HRs, and held on tenaciously, restricting Whangarei to a solitary score in the 5th. Jerry Fitchett went the distance, giving up 5 hits, 1 earned run, 0 walks, and striking out 4. Final score: 5-1 Brisbane. Allan Spear (2.0IP, 7H, 5ER, 1BB, 2K) got a quick hook.

[Izz]

2049 Preliminary Finals

The morning before the Preliminary Finals commenced, the Fury announced 26 y/o rising star Marcos Lopez (.318/.368/.540, 33HR) had agreed to a 5-year extension.

Game 1 - Wellington Fury vs Sydney Blue Sox

The big news out of the Blue Sox camp was Brodie Backhouse returning from his long injury layoff and slotting straight back into the closing role. As they had last season, the Sox looked out of sorts in this one, though Wellington just couldn’t convert their chances. A 2-run 8th saw Sydney finally on the board with a lead of 1, but Wellington made the most of Backhouse’s rustiness, Philip Burton leading off the 9th with a triple and coming home off the next batter’s sac fly to even the game up. The Fury got runners on the corners with 2 outs but Lopez ground out to 3rd to end the threat. Sydney couldn’t score in the bottom of the inning and the game headed to extra time. The scores remained locked until the bottom of the 13th, when Nigel Pinney got a fastball over the plate and pulled it over the rightfield wall for a walk-off HR. Final score: 3-2 Blue Sox.

Both Cummins (7.0IP, 4H, 0ER, 5BB, 7K) and Bob Davies (7.1IP, 8H, 1ER, 1BB, 6K) had their share of nerves, but kept getting themselves out of trouble. Kade Clark got the win for Sydney.

Game 1 - Brisbane Bandits vs Adelaide Venom

This one stayed close until the 9th, when Brisbane beat up on Cody Sutcliffe to the tune of 4 runs to blow the game out of the water. Final score: 8-4 Brisbane. Adelaide’s relief pitchers looked short of a gallop, with Brisbane racking up 17 base hits. Cong Chaim and Hudswell both homered for Brisbane, while Ziersch went deep for Adelaide. Ralston (7.1IP, 6H, 2ER, 3BB, 4K) picked up his 2nd win of the postseason, while Karl Bell (5.2IP, 8H, 3ER, 1BB, 9K) got the loss but also got the ball to dance plenty, too.

Game 2 - Wellington Fury vs Sydney Blue Sox

Marcos Lopez was 3-5 today, but it was his 5th inning Grand Slam that got all the attention. Those 4 runs were the difference, with the final score 6-2 to the Fury. Every player in the Fury starting lineup got a base hit, while Sydney managed only 10 baserunners (7 hits, 3 walks). Barry (7.2IP, 7H, 2ER, 2BB, 2K) picked up win #3 on the trot, while Jesus Rodriguez (4.1IP, 7H, 5ER, 2BB, 2K) didn’t do a good job getting himself out of trouble, and wound up with the loss.

Game 2 - Brisbane Bandits vs Adelaide Venom

In a game of rallies, Brisbane were just too strong, scoring in multiples every time they had a threat. Final score: 11-6 Bandits. Chaim hit HR# 3 of his postseason, and the Bandits put together 6 XBH in comparison to Adelaide’s 1. Aitcheson (6.2IP, 11H, 5R, 4ER, 0BB, 3K) took a bit of tap but got the W, while Justin Trembath (3.1IP, 5H, 5ER, 2BB, 3K) got a quick hook.

Game 3 - Wellington Fury vs Sydney Blue Sox

The Blue Sox had no answer to Cameron Worsfold, who allowed just 2 hits and 4 walks through 8 innings. He was pulled in sight of a playoff shutout, and while he didn’t look too happy about it at the time, he towed the company line after the match, saying it was a team game and individual performances were “icing not cake.” The starter, who had an 8-15 record during the regular season, struck out 4 hitters and threw 107 pitches. Final score: 2-0 Wellington. Baden Moore (8.0IP, 6H, 2ER, 2BB, 3K) could feel aggrieved not to have got a better result. There were no extra base hits in the game.

Game 3 - Brisbane Bandits vs Adelaide Venom

With their season on the line the Venom fought hard, and the Bandits committed 3 errors to take the foot off the throat. It was still a close game, though, Brisbane bringing the tying run to the plate without an out in the 9th. They couldn’t get any runners home, though, the final score 5-3 Venom. Axel Wakefield and Lee both homered for Brisbane, while Carl Bristcoe went deep for Adelaide. Karl Lang (8.0IP, 5H, 3ER, 3BB, 4K) got the win, while Fitchett (8.0IP, 7H, 4R, 3ER, 2BB, 4K) took the loss.

Game 4 - Wellington Fury vs Sydney Blue Sox

Sydney scored in the 1st but then struggled to do anything worthwhile as Cummins threw a smart game. It was still a tight one heading into the bottom of the 8th, with just 1 run in it, but that all changed very quickly, Wellington piling on 5 runs, mainly thanks to a Roy Andrews Grand Slam. Sydney had no answers, the final score 6-1 Wellington. No sooner had the last pitch been thrown than grumblings about the top seeds sitting out a week began again. Cummins (9.0IP, 6H, 1ER, 1BB, 5K) was great in going the whole game and picking up his 1st playoff win of 2049. Bob Davies (7.0IP, 7H, 3ER, 2BB, 1K) seemed down on velocity even if his locations were generally pretty good.

Game 4 - Brisbane Bandits vs Adelaide Venom

Aguirre put Brisbane into the lead with a 3-run jack in the 3rd, and while the Venom got 1 back in the 7th they never looked in it. Losing Ziersch (who was hitting .528 for the series) to a knee injury in the 1st didn’t help, but after 2 singles to open the game they could only manage 2 more base hits and 3 walks. The Bandits made Adelaide cry for mercy in the 8th, piling on 6 runs, 4 of those courtesy of Gordon Appleby’s Slammer. Final score: 9-1 Brisbane and both the top seeds were gone! Bell (6.2IP, 8H, 3ER, 1BB, 4K) wouldn’t want to remember this postseason too much, while Ralston (6.1IP, 4H, 1ER, 3BB, 5K) looked every inch the superstar Bandits’ management predicted he would become.

[Izz]

2049 Championship Series - Wellington Fury vs Brisbane Bandits

Preview: Most of the talk before this series wasn’t about the 2 contenders, but about the fact the top seeds, the 2 best regular season teams, had been dumped out with nary a shot fired. Was the new finals system broken? Many seemed to think so. It was important to note, though, that while Adelaide and Sydney did have the best regular season records, it wasn’t by much. Sydney (91-71) had ended up only 3 games better than Central Coast (88-74), and 4 games better than Championship Series-bound Brisbane (87-75). Adelaide (90-72) had been sliding the whole 2nd half of the season.

However, this did mark the 2nd year in a row that the playoff side with the worst regular season record was featuring in the final showdown. But even that could be argued against looking at the stats: Wellington (84-78) had dropped their last 2 games to make it look like Canberra (83-79) had given them a run for their money, when it really hadn’t been quite as close as that.

Wellington certainly deserved their spot. They’d been consistently the best pitching unit all season, ranking 1st overall, with the best bullpen and the best defensive efficiency, as well as the least runs and hits allowed. Throughout the year they’d restricted teams to a .248 batting average, and that tenacity, both on the mound and in the field, had been on show throughout the postseason, as they first tied down the 2nd-best pitching unit, in the Thunder, and then the 3rd-best offensive unit, in the Blue Sox.

Where Wellington tended to struggle was offensively, their 707 runs scored during the season only 12th-equal in the league.

The Bandits, on the other hand, didn’t really stand out statistically as excellent anywhere. Overall, they were the 6th-best hitters and the 6th-best pitchers, though their offense certainly had pop about it. They had the most XBH and the 2nd-most HRs, with Aguirre (39), Harrison Jackson (28), and Young-tae Lee (21) leading the team. In fact, 8 of their 9 everyday players hit 10+ HRs in the season.

Who would win it? The favourite fan pick was Brisbane in 5.

The Bandits had no injuries to contend with, while Wellington were without regular SPs Ian Northand and Gavin Harris. Leo Sweetman was also still in hospital, with it looking increasingly likely that he wouldn’t play baseball again, though indications were he’d recover enough to live a productive life. Juan Gallegos, Fury skipper, repeatedly dedicated the postseason to Sweetman, and every player interviewed spoke of how much they wanted to win for ‘Eye Candy.’

Sweetman had been in his 1st season at the Fury after being traded across by the Metros. Over his relatively short career he hit .299/.365/.463, 490-1639, with 250 runs, 106 doubles, 5 triples, 51HR, 150BB, and 6 stolen bases.

Game 1

Ashley Barry’s (10-16, 4.98 ERA, 4.97 FIP, 1.26 WHIP) excellent postseason, where’d he’d racked up a 3-0 record with a 1.80 ERA, 3.15 FIP, and 1.20 WHIP, saw him get the Game 1 nod for Wellington. Clint Aitcheson (18-11, 4.64 ERA, 4.57 FIP, 1.34 WHIP), who was 2-1 so far this playoff campaign, would start for Brisbane.

Gordon Appleby thwacked a 2-run HR in the bottom of the 1st to put Brisbane ahead, but Wellington immediately replied, scoring 3 in the 2nd on the back of singles, walks and an error (1 run was credited as unearned).

The score stayed 3-2 until the 7th, both teams trading baserunners but not runs, when Chaim hit his 4th HR of the playoffs to lock things up. In the bottom of the 8th, an error by the Wellington SS helped the Bandits continue a rally, which in the end scored 3 runs.

Yu-hsui Chin came to the mound to throw the 9th, and soon found himself in trouble. He walked Roy Andrews, gave up a single to Damian Blachford, and walked Yang-cheng Liang. Bandits’ manager Bronson Pollock persevered with Chin, though, even though the top of Wellington’s lineup was due. Christos Hutchinson hit his 3-1 pitch sharply towards the hole between 1st and 2nd, but Aguirre showed great range to get across, glove it and fire it to 2nd. Not only that, but he was back on the bag at 1st in time to complete the 3-6-3 double play. Andrews scored but a runner on 3rd and 2 outs looked a lot less dangerous than runners on the corners and 1 out. Next up, Bill Baxter also hit a grounder towards 1st. A regulation out, and the game was over. Final score: 6-4 Brisbane for the early advantage.

Barry (7.0IP, 5H, 3ER, 3BB, 3K) and Aitcheson (7.0IP, 8H, 3R, 2ER, 1BB, 4K) were both middle of the road. Reliever Marcos Gallo got the win, while Jeremy Malone could partly blame his defense for the L next to his name.

Game 2

Wellington would start Cameron Worsfold (8-15, 4.55 ERA, 4.80 FIP, 1.34 WHIP) against Brisbane’s Jerry Fitchett (12-12, 4.14 ERA, 3.88 FIP, 1.32 WHIP).

Brisbane put an early run on the board in the 2nd, and held the lead until the 6th, when Wellington hit 3 consecutive singles to begin the inning, tying the score. They would go ahead 2 outs later, Marcos Lopez collecting an RBI and a base hit after hitting a nubber down the 3rd-base line that rolled to a stop almost exactly halfway between 3rd and home, and fair.

Young-tae Lee was having none of that, however, leading off the bottom of the inning with a solo HR deep over centre. In the 7th, Brisbane ran away with it, piling on 4 runs, 2 of those courtesy of Chaim’s 5th postseason jack. Wellington got 2 runners on base in the 8th, but with only an out remaining couldn’t convert either of them to runs.

In the top of the 9th they loaded the bases with 1 out (BB, BB, single to shallow left), but once again Chin got himself out of trouble, striking out Liang and inducing a popup from Hutchinson that was snaffled by the 2B. Final score: 6-3 Brisbane and they’d won their first-up home games.

Worsfold (6.0IP, 6H, 3ER, 1BB, 5K) picked up the loss, while Fitchett (4.2IP, 7H, 0ER, 1BB, 4K) looked to be struggling and tired, so was pulled before 5 innings were completed. Brodie Sweeny got the win, and Chin his 3rd save of the postseason.

Off Day

Wellington got more bad injury news today, learning that 33 y/o Dean Warner, who’d injured himself running the bases in the 5th inning of Game 2, would be on the DL at least 4 months thanks to a torn back muscle.

Game 3

For their 1st home game of the series, Wellington would put ace Jay Cummins (19-12, 3.00 ERA, 3.80 FIP, 1.09 WHIP) on the mound. Brisbane would start Lance Ralston (13-10, 3.09 ERA, 3.53 FIP, 1.17 WHIP).

Wellington fans hoping for a repeat of Cummins’ last start, where he went the whole game against Sydney, were very disappointed. Vic Toman led off the game with a double off the centrefield wall; Chaim followed that up with a single, and Toman scored off Aguirre’s sac-fly. Appleby then ripped another one over the CF’s head. It bounced awkwardly off the bottom of the wall and when the dust settled Appleby had slid into the 3rd and Brisbane were 2-0 up.

Cummins struck out the side in the 2nd but any calmness that might’ve settled over him and the fans well and truly disappeared in the 3rd. With 1 out, the Bandits went single, single, rbi-double, 4-3 rbi ground out, 2-run HR to Axel Wakefield to put them 6-0 up. Cummins walked the next batter and got his marching orders. Aguirre hit a solo HR in the 5th, and while the Bandits were getting on-base with ease, Wellington looked outclassed and overmatched. Christos Hutchinson tried to spark them in the 6th when, after squeezing a single wide of 2nd, he stole 2nd and then 3rd 3 pitches later in the same at-bat. It wasn’t to be, though. Wellington did load the bases, but Ralston got a reassuring chat and pat from his pitching coach and recovered to strike out the next 2 hitters and end the threat.

In the end it was a hammering, the final score 9-0 Brisbane, to put them within 1 win of the Championship.

Cummins (2.2IP, 7H, 6ER, 2BB, 3K) got punished, while Ralston (8.0IP, 5H, 0ER, 2BB, 6K) started the 9th but after he allowed a leadoff single (his fastball looking more like a changeup) he was replaced. He had every reason to be happy with his performance, though. It marked his 4th win of the postseason, and he was looking better with every start.

Game 4

Wellington went with youngster Dan Pankhurst (7-11, 4.24 ERA, 4.79 FIP, 1.41 WHIP), who’d started 23 games during the season. He had the nickname ‘Giant Killer’ and, with the Fury staring down the barrel at a sweep, Wellington fans were hoping he’d live up to the moniker today. Aitcheson would start on limited rest for Brisbane, as they looked to hammer that final nail in Wellington’s coffin.

On a drizzly night, solo home runs were the order of the occasion, though 2 doubles in the 4th put Brisbane on the board. Blair Morris slugged the 1st HR of the night in the 5th to put the Bandits up 2-0.

A rain delay in the 5th ended up finishing the night for both starters, and in the 7th Rice got Wellington on the board with a HR. In the bottom of the 9th Philip Burton levelled the scored with a 1st-pitch of the inning HR off closer Marcos Gallo.

Chaim hit his 6th HR of the postseason, and 3rd of this series in the 11th to give Brisbane a 1-run lead, but Marcos Lopez tied the game back up in the bottom of the inning with yet another solo bomb. It was only fitting that a HR should end proceedings, with Damian Blanchford slapping 1 over the fence in the bottom of the 12th. Walk-off HR and Wellington were still clinging to life. Final score: 4-3 Fury.

Aitcheson’s (5.0IP, 6H, 0ER, 0BB, 2K) and Pankhurst’s (4.1IP, 3H, 1ER, 3BB, 3K) outings were cruelled by the weather. Brisbane used 6 relievers, and Wellington 4, throwing up interesting conundrums for both managers heading into Game 5. The Fury picked up another injury, with veteran reliever Jeremy Malone likely to be missing for the rest of the series with a dead arm.

Game 5

Barry would trot out for Wellington, confident of his chances of keeping his team in the series. “If I just hit my spots, we’ll do okay. Yeah, I know this Brisbane team’s full of punch, but you can never go wrong hitting the corners.” Fitchett would start for Brisbane.

Whatever the result of the series, this game would go down in history as one of the greats. Brisbane once again jumped out of the blocks 1st, scoring 2 in the top of the 1st on the back of F9, 5-3 ground out, double, single, rbi-single, rbi-single, F8. Roy Andrews clawed a run back for Wellington with a solo jack in the 5th, and then Burton put the Fury ahead thanks to his 2-run HR in the 6th.

Pepe Calderon nudged 1 just over the fence in the 8th to see the scores locked up, and the game once again headed into extra innings. In the 10th, pinch-hitter Adam Guiney jagged a leadoff solo HR to put Brisbane up 4-3. But Marcos Gallo again struggled, Hutchinson leading off the bottom of the inning with a single, going to 3rd on Bill Baxter’s double, then scoring off a sac fly.

Ismael Aguirre hit a HR in the next inning to once more put Brisbane ahead. Southpaw and rookie Armando Ruiz came out for Brisbane in the bottom of the inning. He walked Andrews on 4 pitches. Blachford singled and so did Liang and the bases were loaded with 0 outs. Hutchinson ground into a 5-2 fielder’s choice. Next up was Bill Baxter. He took an almighty heave at his 2-1 pitch, and missed. He fared a bit better on the 2-2 fastball though, driving it over left centre. The CF backed up, and up, climbed the wall, reached out, and came down with an empty glove.

Walk-off Grand Slam!

Final score: 8-5 Wellington, and it looked like backs-to-the-wall was their preferred playing mode.

Barry (7.0IP, 5H, 2ER, 0BB, 4K) did indeed hit his spots, but left the game after 7 with an undisclosed injury. Fitchett (6.2IP, 8H, 3ER, 1BB, 4K) had a middle-of-the-road outing. Baxter was 3-6, and hit a double to go with his slammer.

Game 6

The momentum of the series had shifted, even though the last 2 games had been hard-fought, extra-inning affairs. Could Wellington be the 2nd team in AUNZBL history to come back from a 3-game deficit and win it all? They still needed 2 wins to do that, and were now back on Brisbane’s home turf. The off day had come at the right time for both bullpens, but perhaps Wellington would’ve preferred to keep the pressure on.

They would start Cummins on short rest, while Brisbane went with a fully-rested Chin.

Chaim hit his 4th HR of the Championship series in the 1st, but Wellington immediately equalized in the 2nd thanks to a throw to 2nd from the RF that ended up in the LF corner. A Vic Toman triple in the 2nd scored 2, and Chaim’s follow-up single scored Toman to put Brisbane 4-1 in front. Wellington cut 2 off the lead in the 4th, and Burton’s solo blast in the 5th levelled things up.

Brisbane immediately retook the lead, Chaim denied a 5th HR of the series by a few centimetres of fence. His double drove Toman home (who’d reached on an error) and Chaim scored later in the inning. 6-4 Brisbane. The topsy-turvy nature of the game continued into the top of the 6th, Blachford doubling home Andrews to end Chin’s night. Ruiz, fresh off giving up that walk-off Grand Slam, was the replacement pitcher and he’d continue to have nightmares after Liang blasted a 429 feet 2-run HR over left centre to give Wellington the lead.

And then the scoring dried up, even though both teams continued to put runners on base. Aguirre singled with 2 outs in the bottom of the 9th, but Hudswell’s weak grounder to 1st ended the game. Final score: 7-6 Wellington, and they were feeling the rush, skipper Juan Gallegos telling media at the aftermatch presser that it took him half an hour to settle the team down for the post-match team talk.

Cummins (4.2IP, 8H, 6R, 4ER, 0BB, 4K) had another forgettable outing, but so did Chin (5.1IP, 8H, 6ER, 4BB, 2K). Ruiz blew his 3rd save of the postseason.

Barry’s injury wasn’t severe, though he’d played no further part in this series. He had a tired arm.

Game 7

Against all expectations, this series was headed to a 7th game!

Wellington went with Worsfold, who hadn’t pitched since his Game 2 start, while Brisbane would start postseason superstar Ralston.

Both pitchers jousted until the 4th, when Aguirre cracked his 0-2 pitch 429 feet over leftfield to open the scoring. Wellington almost evened it up in the 5th, but a pinpoint throw from the RF (the same who’d made such a costly error in Game 6) saw Liang tagged out at the plate. Wellington would even the game up in the 6th thanks to a run of singles, and then go ahead after Aguirre dropped a throw at his feet that would’ve been the final out of the inning.

The error was repaid in the bottom of the inning by the Wellington 1B, Lopez, who couldn’t handle a 2-out grounder with runners on 1st and 3rd. Hudswell then tried to come home from 2nd off Wakefield’s following single to put Brisbane ahead, but was thrown out well short by the LF. The Bandits nicked a run in the 7th, going BB, 6-3 ground out advancing runner, steal of 3rd followed by rbi-single, 6-4-3 double play, and while Wellington hit 3 ball to the warning track and beyond in the 8th, none quite went the distance and all were snaffled by the outfielders.

The Bandits stretched their lead to 3 in the 8th, though another great defensive play by the Fury outfield restricted the innings to 2 runs. Burton doubled into the rightfield gap with 2 outs in the 9th, but today Gallo wasn’t fazed, freezing Blachford up for a game-winning strikeout.

Final score: 5-2 Brisbane. This marked their 4th Championship and 1st in exactly 10 years.

Ralston (5.2IP, 8H, 2R, 1ER, 0BB, 8K) finished off a fine postseason, and might’ve had his 5th win of it had Ruiz not blown another held/save opportunity. In the end it was Ruiz who picked up the W. Worsfold (7.1IP, 7H, 5R, 4ER, 3BB, 2K) got the Game 7 loss.

Hurler of the Series: Ralston (1-0, 13.2IP, 14K, 0.66 ERA).

Slugger of the Series: Aguirre (.481/.545/1.000, 3HR).

[Izz]

2049 Championship-winning Bandits

[Izz]

2049 Season Leaderboards

[Izz]

Hall of Fame - Kelvin Ackland

Ackland had played past his best-before date in his quest to be the 1st to 3000 hits, and still hadn't quite made it, but he was certainly deemed a worthy addition to the Hall. Inducted in Auckland colours, the quiet Australian kept his acceptance speech short and sweet. He'd won 3 Gold Gloves, picked up 1 SotY, and been to the All Star Game 8 times during his nearly 20-year career. He'd also won the batting award in 2028, hitting .338 for the season, and collected 2 Championship rings, both with Auckland (2027, 2040).

Still the all-time league leader in doubles (and likely to hold that title for quite some time - next closest was Mildren on 554 and then all the way back to Bransington on 444), Ackland would be remembered by most as a staple of the Auckland lineup and a very good, if a bit no-frills, allround hitter.

[Izz]

2049 Awards

Gold Gloves

Pitcher: Rodney Butterell (Whangarei Sluggers)
Catcher: Carlo Gadsden (Hobart Prospects)
First Baseman: Ismael Aguirre (Brisbane Bandits)
Second Baseman: Owen Delaney (Hobart Prospects)
Third Baseman: Alan Dulihanty (Whangarei Sluggers)
Shortstop: Gordon Scammell (Auckland Metros)
Left Fielder: Rob Lane (Melbourne Aces)
Center Fielder: Terence Mclaren (Christchurch Cowboys)
Right Fielder: Carl Bristcoe (Adelaide Venom)

Rookie of the Year

There were really only 2 contenders for RotY: Esteban Madrigal and Roland Beckett. And because they’d both had such great seasons, anticipation for this award was much higher than usual.

It went to Roland Beckett. He had an astounding season for a guy who’d spent most of 2048 in AA-ball, only logging 34 games in AAA. He hit .287/.328/.530, 181-630, scoring 92 runs, hitting 34 doubles, 2 triples, and 37HR, as well as driving in 121 runners. He walked 37 times, had a WAR of 3.8, and a VORP of 40.4.

Madrigal (.277/.368/.503, 36HR) came 2nd, and it was a long way down to 3rd-place, Central Coast’s Stefan Lock (.247/.305/.461, 34HR) taking the bronze. Lock, 24 y/o, still had a bit of development to go, according to Central Coast’s staff, and was going to a be a decent replacement for Aguirre in the Thunder line-up.

Skipper of the Year

Hayden Stanley, in his 2nd year managing the Thunder, took Central Coast to an 88-74 regular season record and as far as the Division Finals. For his efforts, he received Skipper of the Year. The former pitcher, who’d got as high as AA, had also led the Thunder into the playoffs in 2048, with a slightly better regular season record.

Hurler of the Year

Jay Cummins was the people’s favourite but, as it turned out, not the favourite of the judging panel. 20-game winner Angelo Spear got the gong. The 26 y/o had a breakout year, going 20-6, with a 3.61 ERA, 3.95 FIP, and 1.12 WHIP. He struck out 170 in 252.0 IP, had a WAR of 4.1, and a VORP of 46.2.

Cummins finished 2nd, and 38 y/o Prospects’ starter Jing-zhong Ling (17-9, 3.21 ERA, 3.71 FIP, 1.25 WHIP) finished 3rd. 11-time All Star Sterling Dunlop, who’d also had a strong year in a weak team, didn’t feature.

Slugger of the Year

Ismael Aguirre was the pre-Awards’ favourite and he didn’t disappoint, taking home his 2nd SotY in 3 years. The win capped off an excellent year for the softly-spoken 1B, who’d also won his 2nd-consecutive Gold Glove, and now sported a Championship ring. For the season he hit .354/.419/.615, 229-647, with 106 runs scored, 42 doubles, 5 triples and 39HR hit, 129RBI, and 73BB. His WAR was 10.0 and his VORP 90.8.

Zachary Woollett (.366/.445/.618, 35HR) was a deserving runner-up, while Gareth Orpen (.319/.409/.564, 31HR) surprised a few with his 3rd-place finish.

[Izz]

2049 Season Leaderboards

Rex Rees retired at #4 on the all-time hits list, though Beau Riseley was only 101 behind. Manuel Salinas assumed top spot on the career BA board. Ashley Snijders moved into 2nd place on the HR leaderboard, exactly 200 behind Mildren. 2 new pitchers made it into the top 10 career wins list.

[Izz]

Offseason

2049 Notes

Both ERA and BA dropped in 2049, ERA by 4 points to 4.33 and BA 2 points, to .267.

BL Wrap-up

The Georgetown Piratas scooped their 3rd BL Championship, defeating the Havana Toleteros 4-3. The star of the series was former Hobart 2B Larry Quine, who hit .400/.464/.640, with 2HR, for the Toleteros.

Jake Mekville won RotY, going .288/.401/.535, with 27HR (best in the league) for Georgetown.

Zachariah Pugsley’s 15-3 was good enough to net him Jarra de Oro. He’d suited up for Havana in 2049.

James Peacock had played 5 seasons for the Crocs from 2042-2046 before emigrating to the BL. He was superb for Santiago in 2049, hitting .373/.428/.650, with 23HR, on his way to Bateador de Oro.

League News

In July, Cox Holdings Australia LTD, owner of the Cairns-based AUNZBL franchise, announced a new majority shareholder, a little-known company named TTB Investments. Some enterprising journalistic digging soon turned up that TTB Investments appeared to be a corporate arm of the Australian Government, closely linked with the military.

Along with Kununurra and Darwin, this brought the number of teams in the AUNZBL with direct government interest to 3. The media world, both baseball and mainstream, went into overdrive for a couple weeks, the theory that the government was moving to envelop the most successful sports competition in Australia gaining more traction. Non-government affiliated owners and most players interviewed had a different opinion. They felt the AUNZBL was allying with the government to buy votes and cow everybody into line - and all agreed that if this were the case, it was a disastrous move. The AUNZBL denied anything of the sort, repeatedly saying, “We try to involve ourselves as little as possible in the ownership side of the baseball clubs in our competition - barring direct request that we offer assistance - and we certainly aren’t trying any sort of bully tactics on the owners or players,” but nobody believed a word of it.

The media storm did die down after a time, in part thanks to a flurry of free agents signing deals in August. The Commissioner’s office would’ve been most pleased to see the talk move from politics back to baseball, though nobody was really any the wiser what, if anything, was happening.

Notable Club Happenings

For the 1st time in a many a year, the offseason didn’t begin with any firings. There were still some interesting staff moves, however.

Brisbane: Bronson Pollock had skippered the Bandits to a Championship victory but found his philosophies clashed with 1st-year GM Victor Leseberg, or so the rumour-mill said. Whatever the case, Pollock’s contract wasn’t renewed and he would be on the lookout for a new job for the 2050 season.

Cairns: Crocs’ manager Larry Dutton retired. He’d been involved in baseball since the AUNZBL’s inception in 2019, eventually getting his chance to manage in the bigs with Cairns in 2045. He’d been their skipper for 5 seasons, and hadn’t reached the postseason once, coming closest his 1st year at the helm when Cairns went 90-72. They hadn’t reached .500 since then.

Melbourne: Warren Leeder didn’t get his contract renewed, BC Lou Blenkhorn getting a promotion. Leeder had been at the helm of the Aces’ playing group for 4 seasons, and while they hadn’t made the postseason once, 2049 marked his 1st year finishing below .500.

Perth: While nobody was fired, this was certainly nothing less than a cleanout, with GM Julio Sousa not getting his contract extended and manager Bert McNatty deciding to retire. A very successful scout, McNatty hadn’t been able to translate scouting effectiveness to managerial success, though he had led the Heat to the playoffs twice, and within a whisker of their maiden Championship in 2048. In 2049 Perth crashed and burned, finishing with a 75-87 record. Former minor league pitcher Logan Smith would get his chance to manage after serving as bench coach for the last 3 seasons.

Sydney: Arthur Hudson had led the Blue Sox to top seedings the last 2 postseasons but didn’t earn himself a contract extension. Word out of Sox-ville was that owner Brodie Lang held Hudson responsible for not preparing the team properly for the last 2 playoff campaigns. While not technically a firing, this saga sure played out like one, with Hudson lashing out in subsequent interviews about a “lack of support from the hierarchy.”

Notable Free Agent Signings/Player Contract Extensions

29 Mar: 23 y/o Bradley Courcha (.269/.378/.394, 20HR), having just finished his 3rd season in the majors, signed a 4-year extension with the Roos. The rangy SS/3B still had room for improvement, primarily in his power game.

29 Mar: Sydney were resting up before their 1st postseason series (though not according to anybody involved in the Blue Sox organization; apparently they were “taking lessons learned” from last season’s straight sets playoff exit to make sure the same thing didn’t happen again), but the player agents and GM were obviously still hard at work. 27 y/o Bob Davies (34-18, 3.44 ERA, 3.85 FIP, 1.19 WHIP) was locked up for 4 more years.

13 May: This year’s free agents included:

28 y/o C Jacob Blanksby
28 y/o SP Walter Anglesey
35 y/o SP Richard Avery
36 y/o 1B Ashley Snijders
32 y/o SP Wilson Lara
35 y/o SP Luke Bodkin
29 y/o 1B Terence Bansfield
38 y/o LF Beau Riseley
29 y/o SP Blair Wurfel
36 y/o C Danny Goodwin
29 y/o SP Baden Moore
31 y/o RF Drew Tierney
31 y/o SP Carlo Avery
36 y/o 3B Burt Bargenquast
32 y/o C Jon Werner
29 y/o 3B Jack Hale
37 y/o LF Mike Wurfel
36 y/o CL Pancho Aguilera
39 y/o 2B Bill Bransington
32 y/o 3B Bill Makepeace
37 y/o C Russell Saunders
33 y/o RF Bernie Grinter
36 y/o 2B Craig Hardy
34 y/o CL Brodie Backhouse

21 May: The 1st big signing news of the offseason was also big for a host of other reasons. 36 y/o Ashley Snijders (.302/.396/.531, 428HR) had signed a 3-year deal with Newcastle. Of course, Newcastle was also home to Alastair Mildren, and while nothing had aired in public for some time, they had never appeared to resolve their feud. To make things more interesting, all the talk coming from Roos’ management was that Snijders would play 1B next season, the position that Mildren had occupied for the last 9 years. Would Mildren move to a fulltime DH role? That too seemed unlikely, as 27 y/o Brian Waddington, acquired from Brisbane mid-2049, apparently had the manager’s faith there. So what would transpire in 2050 for Mildren? Only time would tell, and for once the big man wasn’t talking, only winking at media whenever they pursued that line of questioning.

22 May: Jacob Blanksby (.309/.401/.563, 235HR) would call Melbourne’s division rivals, Canberra, his team for the next 5 years.

26 May: Luke Bodkin (154-129, 3.47 ERA, 3.84 FIP, 1.17 WHIP) would play for Christchurch for the next 2 years. The 35 y/o admitted it was a big move, as he’d called Hobart home for his entire major league career to this point.

26 May: 18-game 2049 winner Walter Anglesey (66-69, 4.44 ERA, 4.30 FIP, 1.38 WHIP) signed a big-money 5-year deal with Whangarei. Sluggers’ GM Keith Shanahan said the 28 y/o was “just reaching his peak” and would be a “great leader for our already strong rotation.”

27 May: It wasn’t too long ago that Hidekazu Tashima (.271/.336/.469, 107HR) was touted as the next Japanese player to rip up the AUNZBL. And while he hadn’t done too badly in his 4-year stint with Melbourne, a poor 2049 (.248/.297/.402, 21HR) meant he didn’t have too many AUNZBL suitors come the offseason. Today he signed a 3-year contract with Havana in the BL.

28 May: Brisbane grabbed former Slugger SP Wilson Lara (82-75, 3.99 ERA, 4.36 FIP, 1.42 WHIP) on a 3-year deal. He would slot comfortably into the middle of their rotation.

30 May: Hobart presented Terence Bansfield (.286/.364/.511, 162HR) to the media. The 29 y/o, who’d been traded from Auckland to Melbourne in 2049, had agreed to terms on a 5-year contract. In 2049 he finished with the best ISO in the league, with .285.

3 Jun: Baden Moore (75-63, 4.26 ERA, 4.16 FIP, 1.30 WHIP) signed a 6-year deal with the Prospects.

4 Jun: The Prospects were on a signing spree this offseason. Today it was Richard Avery (176-130, 3.98 ERA, 4.05 FIP, 1.31 WHIP), who’d be on their books for the next 2 years.

16 Jun: Former #1 overall draft pick, Jack Hale (.240/.340/.396, 107HR) had played possibly more major-league ball than his performances warranted. He wouldn’t be plying his trade in the AUNZBL for at least the next 3 years, however, having signed with Juarez in the BL.

19 Jun: Mike Wurfel (.302/.359/.435, 170HR) had 2200 career hits, a career BA over .300, and 6 Championship rings to his name. Injuries had probably robbed him of at least 300 more hits, and with his injury history many thought he’d hang up his boots after his 4-year deal with Cairns ended. But that wasn’t to be, the veteran proclaiming he still had “juice in the tank, and wisdom to offer.” Darwin obviously agreed with this assessment, signing him on a 2-year deal. By all accounts it was a massive drop in pay, but Wurfel wasn’t worried about the money. He just wanted to “keep on trucking.” 6’2” and 121 kilograms, Wurfel sometimes did resemble a truck when navigating left field. A day later Darwin traded their incumbent LF to Newcastle for a CF.

23 Jun: Another aging star found himself a home for next season, with Bill Bransington (.262/.375/.480, 411HR) signing on the dotted line with Perth. The deal was for 2 years, though the 2nd year was a vesting option requiring 550 plate appearances. Bransington had been even more underwhelming at Canberra than he had been at Brisbane, but obviously Perth thought he would add to their roster.

23 Jun: Melbourne announced Russell Saunders (.252/.349/.412, 187HR) would be joining their squad for 2050.

9 Jul: Danny Goodwin (.280/.336/.453, 253HR), just turned 37 y/o, signed a 3-year contract with Hobart.

25 Jul: Brisbane continued a solid offseason of recruiting, adding all-time saves leader Brodie Backhouse (48-44, 374 sv, 2.65 ERA, 2.77 FIP, 1.09 WHIP). Backhouse didn’t play any regular season ball at all in 2049, and his 1 postseason outing definitely showed signs of rust, but he said his arm felt “as good as ever.” He’d signed a 1-year deal.

4 Aug: Pancho Aguilera (62-58, 20 sv, 4.21 ERA, 3.82 FIP, 1.22 WHIP) signed with Wellington for 2 years. He was hoping to nail down a starting spot during Spring Training, admitting the role of closer, which he’d fulfilled for a big chunk of last season at Adelaide, was “tough for me.”

7 Aug: Burt Bargenquast (.265/.353/.346, 70HR) would call Auckland home for the next 2 years.

10 Aug: Hobart continued their recruiting drive, picking up Blair Wurfel (49-35, 3.88 ERA, 4.08 FIP, 1.30 WHIP) on a 2-year deal.

10 Aug: Christchurch signed Carlo Avery (55-59, 4.08 ERA, 4.21 FIP, 1.42 WHIP) for 4 years.

11 Aug: Jon Werner (.288/.347/.489, 142HR) would move south from Auckland to windy Wellington, having signed with the Fury for 2 years.

11 Aug: The Metros weren’t through signing veteran infielders, today presenting Craig Hardy (.292/.356/.385, 62HR) to media with news he’d be a Metro for the next 2 seasons.

13 Aug: 34 y/o Xing-hua ‘Fury’ Ling (170-114, 3.45 ERA, 3.58 FIP, 1.13 WHIP) hadn’t hogged many headlines since he’d left Sydney. In fact, his free agency had mostly flown under the radar with the media. Melbourne, though, were excited to sign him, doing so for 2 years, with the 2nd year being a team option buyout.

17 Aug: The preseason signing spree continued, with Beau Riseley (.297/.347/.469, 345HR) re-signing with the Heat for the 2050 season.

27 Aug: Drew Tierney (.239/.340/.389, 51HR) would turn out for the Blue Sox again in 2050, after signing a 1-year deal.

26 Sep: 33 y/o Allan Spear (136-119, 4.22 ERA, 4.17 FIP, 1.28 WHIP) wasn’t having a particularly great spring, which perhaps was why Whangarei moved to extend his contract. Both parties agreed to a 2-year extension (the 2nd year a vesting option based on innings pitched), which would potentially see him in Sluggers’ colours until the 2052 season.

Notable Trades

20 Apr: Canberra shipped off 2049 16-game winner, 25 y/o SP Isaac Russell (43-57, 5.13 ERA, 4.72 FIP, 1.43 WHIP) to Perth in return for 28 y/o corner outfielder Jayden Pye (.253/.338/.426, 77HR) and a prospect.

3 Jun: Melbourne needed a new catcher, now that Blanksby was goneskies, and today they wrangled a trade with Hobart to make that happen. The Aces sent 5 prospects, most of whom looked to have a shot of playing major-league ball one day, across to the Tasmanian-based team, getting 26 y/o C Carlo Gadsden (.271/.313/.461, 47HR) in return, plus some cash. Gadsden had only been an everyday player in the 2nd-half of 2049, and while his numbers for the season (.235/.274/.397, 18HR) didn’t necessarily inspire confidence, he was a guy who Melbourne’s scouts expected to hit .290 with 25HR.

6 Jun: 31 y/o RF Maximo Moreno (.296/.321/.361, 2HR), a minor leaguer, and some cash were off from Darwin to Perth. In return, the Diggers would get the services of 37 y/o CF Jorge Lopez (.258/.324/.412, 27HR).

Notable Injuries

28 Jun: After teammate Bradley Courcha got mugged last year, Roos’ SS Andre England got himself a gun license and a handgun, toting the weapon everywhere he went. He might have 2nd thoughts about his self-defense strategy now, though, after shooting himself in the foot while attempting to clean his prize possession. He’d be recuperating from the injury for at least a month, but might never live down the embarrassment.

11 Sep: Veteran reliever Jeremy Malone (62-45, 203 sv) would miss at least 5 weeks of the season due to elbow inflammation.

NABA Wrap-up

The Jamestown Originals once again won the NABA, and once again by 1 game. They’d won every year so far.

Wesley Simons (.278/.330/.482, 16HR) won the North Cascades Award. The Dutch import had made it as high as AAA in Whangarei’s system before heading to the Upper Americas. Simons’ 16HR led the league.

The Yosemite Award went to former AUNZBL closer Bob Hesketh, now a dominant starter for Sioux City. He went 7-1 (notching up 3 saves in 5 relief appearances, too), with a 2.13 ERA, 2.81 FIP, and 1.03 WHIP.

Justin Jackson (.311/.411/.531, 9HR) won the Yellowstone Award.

Other Notes

The Prospects were deemed to have had the most productive offseason, acquiring a positive +12.9 WAR. At the other end of the scale, Kununurra had lost a few players and added a lot of cheapies (worth a total of +0.8 WAR). Their net WAR loss was -10.7.

[Izz]

2050 Preseason Predictions

Coastal Division: The Venom would be too strong, with the Crocs finishing 2nd.

East-West Division: Brisbane would be unstoppable in 2050 according to the experts, and would set a new all-time record for wins.The Thunder would also be strong but still be left in the dust by the Bandits. The Roos would be in with a wildcard shot, too.

NZ Division: Whangarei would canter to victory here, with Wellington finishing above .500 but no threat.

Southern Division: This was Sydney's to lose, though Canberra would provide some competition.

Wildcard: The Thunder and Crocs would win the 2 slots.

Slugger of the Year: Ismael Aguirre would win his 3rd in 4 years, though he was always everybody's favourite. Snijders would have a great year for his new team, and Benjamin Ziersch would also be in the running. Surprisingly, quite a few punters predicted that Manny Gallo would break Mildren's HR record this season.

Hurler of the Year: This would be hotly contested between Brisbane duo Lance Ralston and Clint Aitcheson. Angelo Spear of the Thunder was predicted to notch up around 250 Ks, which if accomplished, would be the best mark since 2028.

What would the season actually bring? Who knew, but wasn't that all the fun?

[Izz]

2050/2051 Season - October

Notable Performances

4 Oct: Zachary Woollett entered the 2050 season on a 16-game hitting streak. He extended that to 20 today, going 2-4 as Cairns dominated Hobart 12-1.

5 Oct: Marcos Gallo won the 5 spot in Brisbane’s rotation to begin the season, and had a whale of a game 1st time out. While he didn’t get the win, he went 7 innings, allowing just 4 hits (1 of which was a solo HR), and 2 walks. The exciting thing for fans: he whiffed 11 hitters. Brisbane eventually overcame the Heat 2-1, scoring the winner in the bottom of the 9th.

8 Oct: Lindsay Colson reached the 300HR milestone today. The 33 y/o, who’d gone straight from college-ball into the majors, brought up the achievement with a solo shot in the 8th in a 3-5 performance. Canberra’s 12-8 loss to Adelaide might’ve dampened the occasion slightly, but Colson was still excited, telling media after the game, “Actually, it would’ve been really nice if there was a guy on base too, because that would’ve been my 1000th career ribbie.”

8 Oct: Jing-zhong Ling recorded the season’s 1st shutout, keeping Darwin scoreless even though he allowed 8 hits and 2 walks. He struck out 6 as Hobart cruised to a 9-0 victory.

10 Oct: Young-tae Lee won the season’s 1st PotW, with a .481/.559/.704 effort over the last 7 days. His hits included 3 doubles and a HR.

10 Oct: Woollett’s 1-3 in today’s 6-1 defeat of the Bandits saw the 30 y/o’s hit streak reach 25 games.

11 Oct: Jay Cummins held on in a tight one, going the distance on 6 hits and 1 walk to see Wellington edge past Sydney 2-0. He struck out 6.

13 Oct: Brisbane halted Woollett’s hit streak at 27 games, tying him at 6th-equal on the all-time hit streak ladder.

16 Oct: Crocs’ SP Vicente Velez was on fire to begin the season. He hadn’t allowed an earned run in his 1st 2 starts, and continued the trend today, this time going the whole game to see the Fury shut out 6-0. Velez allowed 6 hits, walked none, and fanned 4. He was 3-0 for the season, exactly half of Cairns’ win total.

17 Oct: Angelo Wells’ strong week (.583/.600/.958, 2HR) saw him snare PotW. The fresh-faced 22 y/o LF also hit 2 doubles in his 14-24, and stole 2 bases.

18 Oct: Canberra exploded today, trampling Auckland to the tune of 24-2. While there were great performances across the lineup, Brad Baker’s was arguably the best. The 1B went 5-6, with a 2-run HR included. He scored 4 times and drove in 4.

23 Oct: Dermott Bacon went 5-6 to help Cairns overcome Newcastle 6-2. Of course, some media couldn’t resist running with headings/lead-ins such as ‘Bacon Sizzles - Smokes Roos for 5 Hits’ when covering the story.

23 Oct: Sterling Bull, who assured journos in the post-match presser that his nickname wasn’t ‘China Shop,’ had rampaged his way to a 20-game hit streak. He did so in style, too, going 3-4 to help the Thunder beat division rivals Brisbane 4-2.

24 Oct: Cowboys’ 1B Ed Geoghegan was quite proud of his nickname of ‘Cushion,’ and was often quoted as saying he’d prefer to be “cuddly than cut.” He earned this week’s PotW with a .448/.484/.966 stat-line. Most impressive were his 5HR (out of 13 hits), which catapulted him into a share of the season HR lead.

25 Oct: Bull’s hit streak ended at 21 games.

26 Oct: Angelo Spear allowed only 5 hits, K’ing 8, to help the Thunder defeat the Fury 5-0.

30 Oct: Jesus Rodriguez was masterful for the Blue Sox today, conceding only 2 hits, walking none, and striking out 10 to see his team to an 11-0 thrashing of Adelaide.

31 Oct: Glen Aitken hadn’t done much of note over the last few seasons, but his last 7 days were good enough to see him win PotW. He hit .435/.480/.783, with 2HR.

Notable Injuries

5 Oct: Sluggers’ SS Alan Dulihanty would miss the next 6 weeks with a quad strain.

6 Oct: 2049 RotY, Roland Beckett, would be out of Auckland’s lineup for the next 6 weeks with a torn quad.

8 Oct: Before his 1st start on the 5th of October, 27 y/o Brock Knight was, in his own words, “super-pumped.” After featuring in the Canberra bullpen for the last 2 seasons he’d finally earned a spot on the starting rotation, “his dream come true.” 9 pitches later he wasn’t so happy, leaving the mound with his right arm hanging limp. Today he received bad news: he’d be on the DL 4-5 months with an inflamed shoulder.

13 Oct: Al Wood (.302/.375/.512, 2HR) would miss at least the next 6 weeks of Adelaide’s campaign with a hamstring strain.

20 Oct: Perth, already off to a slow start, could’ve done without this news: catcher Warren Danvers (.333/.419/.815, 4HR), a shining light in an otherwise dismal offense, would likely not be back until the end of February after breaking his hand.

25 Oct: Bartolo Gonzales (.321/.402/.524, 4HR) had sprained his knee. He’d be on the DL for around 5 weeks.

Notable Trades/Signings

12 Oct: 31 y/o Benjamin Ziersch (.357/.438/.595, 2HR so far in 2050) signed a 1-year extension with Adelaide. He would’ve been eligible for his 1st free agency run at the end of the season.

Month Awards

Rookie of the Month: Young Metros’ catcher Matthew Schenkel, acquired in the offseason via trade with Cairns, took home the season’s 1st RotM. He hit .281/.337/.629, 25-89, with 15 runs scored, 5 doubles, 1 triple & 8HR hit, as well as 28RBI and 7BB.

Hurler of the Month: Thunder SP Angelo Spear was only 4-2 in October, but the judging panel felt his 1.45 ERA, 3.08 FIP, and 0.74 WHIP were good enough for him to get the gong. He also struck out 35 batters in 49.2IP. He led the league in ERA, WHIP, BB/9 (0.54), K/BB (11.67), and IP (49.2).

Slugger of the Month: 24 y/o Manuel Alou had spent most of last season on the Thunder’s bench, so didn’t qualify as a rookie this season. At any rate, the 6’4” corner outfielder wasn’t hitting like a rookie. He scooped SotM with a .398/.444/.673 stat-line, his 45-113 including 10 doubles and 7HR. He scored 21 runs, collected 35RBI and drew 10 walks. He led the league in BA, OPS, wOBA (.470), RBI, and WAR (2.3), and was tied for the most hits (45).

Other Notes

10 Oct: Someone purportedly from the Commissioner’s office leaked a list of the top-paid players in the AUNZBL to OotPB TV. Whether it was factual or not was hard to determine, and nobody from AUNZBL headquarters was returning calls. It did make for interesting reading, however. Apparently the highest paid player in the league was Brock Wakely, in the last year of his deal with Sydney and supposedly earning a cool $28,800,000. Currently Wakely was on the DL with shoulder soreness. The next highest paid was Kununurra’s Sterling Dunlop, earning $23,200,000 for the 2050 season. Mildren was 3rd, set to net $17 million - and all he’d done so far this season was warm the pine. A surprising entry at 4th was 28 y/o SP Justin Trembath (career 71-74, 4.38 ERA), who was said to earning 16,200,000 a season at the Venom. Rounding out the top 5 was another Venom SP, Karl Bell, taking home a round $16 mill.

#

Coastal Division: The Venom were 1 game above .500, which was good enough for a 2-game lead over Darwin and Perth. Cairns was 1 further game back, but 5 games below .500.

East-West Division: The Thunder rocketed out to an early 5-game lead with a 23-6 October. Brisbane were in 2nd, while Newcastle were right on their tail, 5 games above .500 and 6 games in arrears of the division leaders.

NZ Division: Auckland did what they’d done last season: jump fast out of the blocks. They led the Cowboys by 2 and Whangarei by 5. Wellington languished at the bottom of the division, their 9-20 record equal-worst in the league.

Southern Division: Nobody in this division finished the month above .500. Canberra and Hobart were tied for the division lead with 14-15 records, while Melbourne was 1 game further back and Sydney 2.

Wildcard: Too early to worry about.

#

Benjamin Ziersch’s (.330/.392/.679, 10HR) 2-run HR in Adelaide’s 8-3 victory over Sydney on the 31st of October put him 1HR clear of the pack, with 2 players on 9, and a handful on 8. Ziersch also led the league in SLG and ISO (.349).

Ismael Aguirre (.375/.427/.650, 8HR) was one of those in the chasing HR peloton. His 45 hits had him tied with Alou at the top of the hits leaderboard, and his 78 bases gave him the lead in that category.

Alan Sneddon (.312/.484/.505, 3HR) led the league in OBP but didn’t have the most walks. He also hadn’t stolen the most bases.

Manuel Salinas (.320/.477/.430, 1HR) drew the most walks in October, getting 28 free passes.

21 y/o Canberra OF Martin Boston (.356/.389/.398, 0HR) had stolen the most bases, with 13. The scrawny livewire said he wanted Sneddon’s recently-acquired season stolen base record for himself. So far Boston had only been caught stealing twice.

Clint Aitcheson (3-1, 2.41 ERA, 2.69 FIP, 1.12 WHIP) led the league in FIP, and was tied in the WAR stakes with 1.5. He was tied with Luke Bodkin (3-3, 2.44 ERA, 2.75 FIP, 0.99 WHIP).

Rhett Thurley led the league in saves, having notched up 10 for the hot Thunder.

Standings, Nov 1

[reds1]

“cuddly than cut.”

I like that.

[Izz]

2050/2051 Season - November

Notable Performances

6 Nov: Rob Lane went 5-5, including 2 doubles, in Melbourne’s 6-2 win over Perth. It was Lane’s 3rd 5-hit game in his major league career.

7 Nov: Philip Burton was the biggest hit in the AUNZBL this week. He went .481/.563/.963, with 3HR, on his way to PotW.

7 Nov: Allen Pye restricted Canberra to 5 hits and 1 walk, striking out 5, to lead Cairns to a 7-0 victory.

14 Nov: Mike Wurfel hit .519/.552/.741 on his way to PotW. His hits included 3 doubles and 1HR, and he only struck out once in 29PA.

15 Nov: Reality TV star Christos Hutchinson hit a triple in the 3rd inning of Wellington’s 14-inning 5-4 loss to the Cowboys. While it was his only hit of the game (1-7), it marked a 20-game hit streak. This was the 2nd time Hutchinson had hit in 20 straight games.

16 Nov: Aucklander Rhett Morrow brought up his 1st career 20-game hit streak in style, slamming a solo HR in Auckland’s 9-6 victory over Hobart.

19 Nov: Morrow’s hit streak ended at 22 games. In worse news, he fractured his foot slipping over when chasing a linedrive and would likely miss a month. He was hitting .343/.429/.587, with 12HR, at the time of the injury.

20 Nov: Hutchinson made it 25 straight games with a hit.

20 Nov: Sydney beat Perth 5-1 to win their 10th on the trot. They were now tied for 1st in their division with Canberra.

21 Nov: Keiran Pickford won PotW. He hit .517/.548/.966, with 4HR.

22 Nov: Hutchinson’s hit streak ended at 26 games.

24 Nov: Jay Cummins threw his 2nd shutout of the year, holding the Cavalry to 5 hits and 1 walk. He struck out 3 and Wellington won 2-0.

24 Nov: The off day might’ve thrown Sydney off, as their winning streak ended at 12 games with them going down 2-1 to Darwin. Sydney now had a 1-game lead in the Southern Division.

28 Nov: Ismael Aguirre collected PotW on the back of a .407/.448/.889 stat-line. His 11-27 hits included 2 doubles, 1 triple and 3HR.

Notable Injuries

1 Nov: Auckland starter Marshall Whiffin (4-1, 3.30 ERA, 3.41 FIP, 1.15 WHIP) would miss about 3 months thanks to acute elbow soreness.

3 Nov: Brodie Backhouse (2-1, 6 sv) had strained his hammy. He wouldn’t be pitching for Brisbane for 8-9 weeks.

13 Nov: Rookie 3B Joshua Moore (.282/.333/.380, 2HR) would be on the DL for the next 3 months with a torn labrum. The 24 y/o joined 5 other Metros’ players on the DL.

19 Nov: Already languishing down the bottom of the NZ, Wellington didn’t need to hear that Marcos Lopez (.294/.337/.455, 5HR) would miss the next 6 weeks with a strained hammy. But hear it they did, and on to the DL he went.

22 Nov: Melbourne would be without first-choice closer Bailey Cleaver (0-1, 10 sv) for at least 2 months. He had a herniated disc in his back.

30 Nov: Vince Hudswell (.320/.374/.519, 11HR) was looking at 4-5 weeks on the sideline while his shoulder inflammation settled down.

Notable Trades/Signings

25 Nov: 28 y/o SP Jay Cummins (5-5, 3.30 ERA, 3.97 FIP, 1.15 WHIP) had proved his worth over the last 2 seasons, and today Wellington committed to a 3-year contract extension, which would likely see him in a Fury uniform for the 1st 2 years of his free agency eligibility.

Month Awards

Rookie of the Month: 25 y/o Bandits’ OF Norman Ladds made it clear to media during his March call-up in 2049 that he’d heard more than enough jokes already in his young life about ‘being one of the lads.’ He was November’s best rookie, hitting .343/.427/.562 during the month, 36-105, with 20 runs, 10 doubles, 2 triples, 3HR, 13RBI, 16BB, and 4 stolen bases (he was also caught stealing 5 times).

Hurler of the Month: Justin Trembath was earning the pay packet Adelaide were supposedly dishing out to him, winning HotM on the back of a 5-0 from 5 starts performance. He had a 1.47 ERA, 2.71 FIP, and 0.76 WHIP, striking out 27 batters in 36.2IP. He led the league in wins, with 9 so far in 2050.

Slugger of the Month: 38 y/o Mike Wurfel snared SotM. He hit .409/.473/.617 in November, collecting 47 hits from 115 at-bats, with 12 doubles and 4HR in that mix. He scored 21 runs, drove in 18 runs, and walked 7 times.

Media Watch

Alastair Mildren: What had happened to him? In 2049 he’d been an everyday player, and still seemingly in the baseball headlines every week, despite being 41 years of age. This season, so far, he’d had 3 PAs, walking in a runner on 1, striking out on another, and grounding out on the 3rd. When asked, he would just shrug and say, “Whatever’s best for the team.” Snijders, who’d usurped his position in the lineup, was having a whale of a season, and appeared to be quite happy to see Mildren warming the pine. He’d also only say, “Whatever’s best for the team,” when questioned by media, but his tone was a lot more smug.

Other Notes

3 Nov: Ed Geoghegan, currently leading the HR race by 1, having hit 11 dingers, and Blair Wurfel got into a bit of argy-bargy in the top of the 1st inning of today’s Cowboys-Prospects game. Wurfel had just given up a solo HR and seemed to be unhappy about the 1st 2 Cowboys’ hitters crowding the plate. Geoghegan did similar, and the 1-2 pitch that hit him on the shoulder had more than a touch of intention to it. Geoghegan charged the mound, waving his bat, and while the pair stopped short of exchanging blows, both dugouts emptied and a curious circle of nose-to-nose players emerged. Once the dust settled both Geoghegan and Wurfel were ejected, and that night the Commissioner’s Office handed down 5-game suspensions.

Both players suggested they might appeal, Wurfel saying, “A guy stands too close to the zone, he might get hit. That’s the way it is. Doesn’t mean I tried to hit him, does it? The pitch got away from me, is all.” Geoghegan said, “If I want to crowd the zone, I can. It’s within the rules. And yeah, if I get hit I get hit. But a guy aims for my head, that’s a different story. Lucky I got good reflexes and some meat on these shoulders to cushion the blow.”

No appeals were lodged and a few weeks later Christchurch skipper Ivan Munoz admitted his hitters’ stances were a deliberate tactic. “Blair’s a great pitcher,” he said, “and we were looking for a little something to put him off his game. Hey, it worked, didn’t it?”

8 Nov: Blair Wurfel returned from suspension today. In the bottom of the 4th, Gary Young slammed a 2-out 3-run HR. Next up was Brett Worsfold. He leaned in over the plate and fouled the 1st pitch off. The next pitch hit him between the shoulder blades. This time there were blows exchanged, though neither man landed a punch. Once again a 5-game suspension was issued for both players. Worsfold complained, “What’s a 5-game suspension for a starting pitcher? It’s nothing. It’s his rest days, that’s all. It should be a 5-start suspension, especially if he’s got history for it.”

#

Coastal Division: The Venom (16-12) doubled their advantage, leading Darwin (14-14) by 4 games on December 1st.

East-West Division: The Thunder (16-12) continued on their merry way, Brisbane (15-13) 6 games behind at the end of the month, and Newcastle (12-16) dropping to 10 games back.

NZ Division: Auckland (11-17) had an awful month, ending it on a 9-game skid. They were overtaken by Christchurch (18-10), who had jumped 5 games ahead. Whangarei (16-12) had drawn level with Auckland.

Southern Division: Sydney’s (19-9) strong mid-month run saw them move through the field, finishing the month a length ahead of Canberra (16-12).

Wildcard: Brisbane had a 3-game advantage, while Auckland, Canberra and Whangarei were tied for the 2nd slot, with Newcastle a game back.

#

The BA lead changed hands on an almost daily basis throughout November, with Esteban Madrigal (.357/.410/.621, 11HR) finishing November atop this leaderboard.

Ismael Aguirre (.346/.384/.634, 17HR) hit 9HRs in the month, finishing 1 ahead in the HR race. He also led the league in SLG, hits (84), XBH (35), and TB (154).

Alan Sneddon (.297/.469/.443, 4HR) snatched the OBP lead in the last few days of the month, as well as the BB lead (54). He hadn’t scored nearly as many runs so far this season as he had last, and was still 1 stolen base back from Martin Boston (.311/.340/.349, 0HR, 20SB). Sneddon was also tied for the most triples so far, with 5.

Snijders (.335/.466/.569, 14HR) was loving his new home in Newcastle. The 37 y/o led the league in wOBA (.440), and WAR (3.4).

Adrian Duggan (5-0, 1.94 ERA, 3.44 FIP, 1.09 WHIP) was yet to lose a game this season, and had the league’s best ERA.

Teammate Angelo Spear (8-3, 2.61 ERA, 3.32 FIP, 1.00 WHIP) was demonstrating his 2049 HotY win was no fluke. He led the league in BB/9 (0.58), K/BB (10.83), FIP, and WAR (2.3).

Adelaide’s Russell Bywaters and Christchurch’s Carlo Rowlands were tied at the top of the saves ladder, both with 18. Rowlands had a 16-save streak going.

Standings, Dec 1

[Izz]

2050/2051 Season - December

2050 #1 Draft Pick

Darwin grabbed 19 y/o high school pitcher Zachariah Pond. Pond had 3 pitches, with his fastball projected to top out at around 160 km/h, as well as a slider and a splitter. Pond wasn’t the sharpest tool in the shed but the 6’4” beanpole was too good a prospect to pass up. He would head to Darwin’s short-A affiliate.

A quick look at how the previous 4 #1 draft picks were doing:

2049, Brad King: Started his pro career in short-A, and finished the 2049 season in AA, where he recorded 1 start. He was up in AAA in 2050, with a 3-6 record so far. Developing fast, King still had issues with his control, but he was going to make a lot of hitters look silly during his career.

2048, Mitch Donahue: Donahue got a few major-league ABs in 2049, where he looked overmatched. He’d played 4 games in the bigs in 2050 too, but was currently in Darwin’s AAA-affiliate, where he was hitting .349/.438/.634, with 11HR.

2047, Gordon Appleby: Earned himself a ring with Brisbane in 2049, hitting 4 postseason HR. Had shown himself handy at SS, but with plenty of room to improve with the bat. This season he was hitting .262/.321/.488, with 14HR, through 58 games. Currently he was projecting to hit 35+ HRs.

2046, Clint Aitcheson: Also part of Brisbane’s 2049 Championship-winning squad, Aitcheson went 2-1 from 5 starts in the 2049 postseason, after finishing the regular season 18-11. He was looking confident on the mound so far this year, with a 5-1 record, a 3.48 ERA, a 3.35 FIP, and a 1.11 WHIP. Already in his 4th year in the majors, Aitcheson held the #2 spot in the Brisbane rotation behind Lance Ralston, but was looking the better pitcher so far this season.

Notable Performances

1 Dec: Auckland slumped to their 10th straight loss, going down to division rivals Wellington 5-3. They would snap out of their funk the following night, overcoming Newcastle 6-4.

5 Dec: This week’s top player was Alan Sneddon. He hit .533/.622/.700 over the last 7 days, with 8 runs, 5 doubles, and 7BB. He attempted no steals.

8 Dec: Zachariah Quinn had the ball on a string today. The 25 y/o Canberra starter allowed just 1 hit (in the 3rd) and 1 walk (in the 2nd), striking out 5, to help the Cavalry canter past Christchurch 4-0.

12 Dec: Kent DeJong went .500/.517/1.000 over the last week, earning himself a PotW award. His 14 hits included 4HR.

19 Dec: This week, Canberra’s Zach Barlow won PotW with a .567/.606/.900 showing, including 2HR.

24 Dec: Norman Lawless went 5-6 to help Darwin whip Auckland 12-2.

26 Dec: Ashley Snijders snared PotW, going .429/.556/1.048, his 9-21 including 1 double and 4HR.

28 Dec: Sam Stubbs responded to his All Star snubbing (the squads were announced in the morning) in the best possible way, collecting 5 hits from 5 at-bats to help Darwin thump Brisbane 13-2.

31 Dec: Mauro Contreras became the 7th player in AUNZBL history to reach 300 saves, doing so against Adelaide, helping Perth to a 2-1 victory. It was a shaky affair, as a 2-out Keiran Pickford double sent the runner on 1st heading around 3rd for home. However, Martin Brewster’s pinpoint throw saw the runner tagged out and Contreras celebrating.

Notable Injuries

1 Dec: Cooper Gerlach (6-3, 4.03 ERA, 3.74 FIP, 1.24 WHIP) would play no further part in Darwin’s season. He’d torn a muscle in his back.

1 Dec: Sydney would be without Trent Allan (.302/.406/.406, 4HR) for the next 3-4 weeks while he recuperated a separated shoulder.

12 Dec: Greg Whalley (4-5, 3.96 ERA, 3.20 FIP, 1.42 WHIP) was facing 6-7 months on the DL. The 25 y/o Canberra SP had a torn labrum.

18 Dec: Melbourne’s Cody England (.332/.381/.438, 2HR) would be out 4-5 weeks with a pinched nerve in his neck.

18 Dec: 34 y/o Brendan Knopp (8-3, 2.55 ERA, 3.91 FIP, 1.03 WHIP) was having something of a revival this year, until today, at least. He was diagnosed with a strained forearm and would probably be out of action until the last week or so of the regular season.

21 Dec: Darwin’s Damian Gilder (5-5, 3.54 ERA, 3.97 FIP, 1.27 WHIP) faced over a year on the DL after being diagnosed with a ruptured UCL.

23 Dec: Darwin, running 2nd in their division, 7 games back, were struck another blow today, with Damon McKinna (.301/.376/.422, 5HR) breaking his hamate. He’d be out 2-3 months.

31 Dec: Ronald Buffey’s (10-6, 3.76 ERA, 4.77 FIP, 1.37 WHIP) season was done. The Kununurra SP had ruptured a tendon in his finger.

31 Dec: Auckland were sliding, and today’s news wouldn’t help team morale. SP Jeremy Challinor (6-9, 3.92 ERA, 4.00 FIP, 1.33 WHIP) had biceps tendinitis, and would need 2-3 months on the DL.

2050 All Stars

Australian All Stars

SP Adrian Duggan - CEN - 6-2, 1.96 ERA, 3.18 FIP, 0.95 WHIP
SP Allan Spear - WHA - 11-3, 3.31 ERA, 3.80 FIP, 1.06 WHIP
SP Nathan Beckett - CHR - 10-2, 3.65 ERA, 3.44 FIP, 1.16 WHIP
SP Jing-zhong Ling - HOB - 9-6, 3.33 ERA, 3.79 FIP, 1.29 WHIP
SP Justin Trembath - ADE - 11-4, 3.43 ERA, 4.09 FIP, 1.10 WHIP
SP Lance Ralston - BRI - 10-5, 4.05 ERA, 3.68 FIP, 1.16 WHIP
SP Luke Bodkin - CHR - 6-8, 3.33 ERA, 3.79 FIP, 1.18 WHIP
MR Randall Zorn - CHR - 1-2, 10 sv, 1.14 ERA, 2.16 FIP, 0.71 WHIP
MR Al Heathershaw - ADE - 2-0, 2.45 ERA, 2.33 FIP, 0.79 WHIP
CL Robert Bywaters - ADE - 1-1, 23 sv, 1.62 ERA, 2.06 FIP, 0.99 WHIP
CL Rhett Thurley - CEN - 5-2, 23 sv, 2.64 ERA, 2.77 FIP, 1.08 WHIP
CL Gordon Anderton - WHA - 3-1, 19 sv, 1.40 ERA, 1.87 FIP, 0.82 WHIP
C Jacob Blanksby - CAN - .315/.415/.538, 13HR
C Zachary Woollett - CAI - .309/.387/.570, 18HR
1B Benjamin Ziersch - ADE - .341/.399/.608, 21HR
1B Brendon Stennings - AUC - .328/.376/.479, 7HR
2B Owen Delaney - HOB - .311/.370/.421, 6HR
2B Daniel Wise - NEW - .318/.360/.432, 3HR
3B Brock Wakely - SYD - .273/.378/.523, 13HR
3B Andre England - NEW - .301/.359/.371, 1HR
SS Gordon Appleby - BRI - .298/.348/.571, 22HR
SS Bradley Courcha - NEW - .292/.389/.416, 5HR
LF Martin Boston - CAN - .316/.344/.373, 0HR
CF Christos Hutchinson - WEL - .327/.384/.407, 1HR
CF Zach Barlow - CAN - .319/.365/.576, 15HR
CF Sterling Bull - CEN - .331/.363/.504, 8HR
RF Alan Sneddon - WHA - .324/.468/.491, 7HR
RF Sean Carr - CEN - .285/.381/.468, 7HR

NZ & Overseas All Stars

SP Angelo Spear - CEN - 9-5, 3.17 ERA, 3.42 FIP, 1.09 WHIP
SP Clint Aitcheson - BRI - 7-1, 3.45 ERA, 3.42 FIP, 1.09 WHIP
SP Sterling Dunlop - KUN - 5-5, 2.51 ERA, 3.60 FIP, 1.12 WHIP
SP Walter Anglesey - WHA - 6-6, 3.07 ERA, 3.40 FIP, 1.13 WHIP
SP Edwin Kerr - CEN - 7-5, 3.13 ERA, 3.45 FIP, 1.05 WHIP
SP Sterling Powell - CEN - 7-7, 3.47 ERA, 3.37 FIP, 1.25 WHIP
SP Angelo Pagan - NEW - 3.94 ERA, 3.89 FIP, 1.27 WHIP
MR Armando Ruiz - BRI - 6-0, 1.21 ERA, 2.24 FIP, 0.87 WHIP
MR Kade Clark - SYD - 2-1, 4 sv, 3.03 ERA, 2.32 FIP, 1.25 WHIP
CL Francisco Martinez - BRI - 3-1, 13 sv, 2.45 ERA, 2.44 FIP, 1.27 WHIP
CL Mauro Contreras - PER - 2-3, 12 sv, 5.11 ERA, 2.19 FIP, 1.58 WHIP
CL Rex Herbert - CAI - 1-1, 13 sv, 2.73 ERA, 3.28 FIP, 1.10 WHIP
C Cong Chaim - BRI - .348/.386/.564, 13HR
C Matthew Schenkel - AUC - .257/.321/.552, 19HR
1B Ashley Snijders - NEW - .344/.474/.603, 22HR
1B Ismael Aguirre - BRI - .319/.369/.574, 21HR
1B Terence Bansfield - HOB - .285/.335/.512, 12HR
2B Angelo Rankin - CHR - .303/.338/.490, 12HR
2B Nigel Pinney - SYD - .278/.363/.455, 8HR
2B Craig Hardy - AUC - .298/.354/.350, 0HR
3B Young-tae Lee - BRI - .302/.423/.434, 7HR
SS Manuel Salinas - CAN - .314/.454/.389, 1HR
LF Rob Lane - MEL - .334/.425/.531, 11HR
LF Esteban Madrigal - KUN - .320/.396/.568, 17HR
CF Keiran Pickford - ADE - .323/.364/.555, 21HR
CF Rhett Morrow - AUC - .333/.425/.541, 12HR
RF Manuel Alou - CEN - .303/.366/.520, 15HR
RF Glen Lock - NEW - .288/.338/.415, 7HR

Month Awards

Rookie of the Month: 27 y/o Pioneers’ 1B Willem Baldwin hit .316/.336/.510, 31-98, 16 runs, 2 doubles, 1 triple, 5HR, 21RBI and 4BB.

Hurler of the Month: Canberra’s Al Dunlop was having a successful return to the AUNZBL, winning December’s HotM with a 5-0 effort from 6 starts. His ERA was 1.67, his FIP 3.08 and his WHIP 0.88. He struck out 35 from 43.0 IP.

Slugger of the Month: Ashley Snijders was ripping the league up, hitting .390/.511/.733 in December on his way to SotM. His 41-105 included 6 doubles and 10HR. He scored 22 runs, drove in 35 runners and walked 27 times. Snijders finished the month leading the league in almost every major category: BA (.354), OBP (.481), SLG (.624), OPS, HR (24), wOBA (.459), RBI (81), BB (76), and WAR (6.2). He jumped into the HR lead thanks to 3 2HR games in the space of 5 days (25th - 29th), and finished December 2 ahead of the chasing pack.

Other Notes

Coastal Division: Adelaide (16-13) were getting a bit of competition from Darwin (17-12), who had climbed to 2 games above .500 by the end of December, and only 3 games back in the division.

East-west Division: This was the All Star division in 2050. The Thunder (16-13) saw their lead cut from 6 to 2 by a rampaging Brisbane (20-9), while Newcastle (20-9) were also surging, to be 6 games back. And while Kununurra (16-13) were way out of contention, they still had a good month.

NZ Division: Christchurch (12-17) weren’t doing so well, but were still ahead of Whangarei (15-14) by 2 games at month’s end. Auckland (12-17) continued their slide, finishing December 2 games below .500.

Southern Division: Canberra (17-12) had claimed the lead in the Southern, with Sydney (14-15) now 2 games back.

Wildcard: Brisbane had a 4-game lead over Newcastle, who were holding onto the 2nd slot, and an 8-game lead over Sydney and Whangarei, while Darwin was a further game back.

#

Ismael Aguirre (.326/.377/.569, 21HR) was having an interesting season so far. While still hitting for a good average, and just 3HR back in the HR race, he seemed on track to walk less than he had since the 2045 season and to strike out more than he had since 2046. However, he led the league in hits (118), XBH (44), and total bases (206).

Alan Sneddon (.320/.464/.480, 7HR) seemed intent on upping his power game this season. He’d already hit more HR than in any of his previous big-league seasons, and currently led the league in triples, with 7. He was currently 2nd on the walks leaderboard, and tied for 1st with Martin Boston (.312/.339/.370, 0HR) on the steals board, with 27.

Adrian Duggan (6-2, 2.14 ERA, 3.19 FIP, 0.97 WHIP) didn’t have the wins his pitching deserved, but he was leading the league in plenty of categories. He had the league’s best ERA, FIP, WHIP, H/9 (6.96), OAVG (.213) and WAR (3.5).

Angelo Spear (10-5, 3.11 ERA, 3.46 FIP, 1.08 WHIP) had the league’s best BB/9 (0.81) and K/BB (8.00).

Lance Ralston (10-6, 4.36 ERA, 3.68 FIP, 1.22 WHIP) had the most strikeouts of any pitcher, having fanned 119 batters so far. His K/9 rate was also the best, at 9.10.

Bywaters and Rhett Thurley were now tied atop the saves leaderboard, with 24 each.

Somehow it had slipped media attention, but Jay Cummins (7-10, 3.89 ERA, 4.07 FIP, 1.20 WHIP), who had somewhat controversially missed out on All Star selection, had already charted 3 shutouts this season. His 3rd shutout came in his next start after #2, on the 29th of November. In that game he allowed 7 hits, walked none, and struck out 5, helping Wellington thump Auckland 11-0. In his 6 starts since then he’d won 1 decision and lost 5, despite throwing 7 or more innings 4 times.

Standings, Jan 1

[Izz]

2050/2051 Season - January

Notable Performances

1 Jan: The NZ & Overseas All Stars won their 2nd straight game, this year thumping the Australian All Stars to the tune of 12-5.

5 Jan: Rory Lowe kept the Heat cold, and scoreless, restricting them to just 4 hits as Canberra won 4-0. He struck out 2 and walked none.

7 Jan: Marcos Lopez got 5 hits today as his Fury narrowly lost to Darwin 7-6. However, his 5 hits weren’t the biggest talking point after the game. The fact the game lasted 5 hours and 34 minutes, across 18 innings, was the big talking point. Fortunately for all involved it was a day game, so was finished by 7:40 p.m. One of Lopez’s 5 hits did get plenty of airtime: his 2-run game-tying homer in the top of the 9th. Lopez went 5-8, with 1 run scored, 3 runs driven in, as well as 1 walk drawn.

9 Jan: Brock Wakely took home PotW, hitting .516/.500/1.032 over the last 7 days, with 5 of his 16 hits going the distance.

12 Jan: It may have been an extra-innings affair, but Austin Allan was still the 1st player to record 6 hits in a game since the 2046 season. He went 6-6 for Adelaide as they toughed their way past Hobart 5-4. Not only that, but Allan’s solo HR in the 12 was the eventual winning run, and his 2nd HR of the game, accompanying 2 doubles. He scored 3 runs and drove in 3 runners.

16 Jan: After his 6 hit performance, it was no surprise to see Allan snare PotW. In the game on the 15th he went 4-5, and his stat-line for the last 7 days was an amazing .640/.633/1.240. His 16-25 included 4 doubles, 1 triple and 3HR. He also scored 9 runs and stole 3 bases.

16 Jan: Rory Lowe notched up his 2nd shutout of the month, helping Canberra bully Hobart 5-0. He allowed just 4 hits and no walks, sitting down 8 on strikes.

16 Jan: Kununurra dropped their 10th straight, going down 7-3 to Wellington. They snapped out of it the following night, dealing the Fury an 8-2 loss.

17 Jan: Martin Boston had the nickname ‘Dinky,’ and he certainly liked to poke the ball over the heads of the infielders for cheeky singles. Today he hit in his 20th straight game and even marked the occasion by drawing a walk, only his 15th in 434PA.

19 Jan: Gordon Pedley hit for the cycle (double, single, BB, triple, 2-run HR). To make the accomplishment even sweeter, his 2-run dinger put Hobart ahead and was the eventual winning margin as they defeated Auckland 8-6.

20 Jan: Boston had his hit streak cruelled by the Thunder. He’d made it to 22 games.

23 Jan: Darwin’s Jorge Lopez netted PotW, going .478/.500/1.087, with 4HR out of 11-23.

25 Jan: Alastair Mildren made 3 PH appearances in October, then spent all of November and December warming the pine. He finally got a start on the 17th of this month, hitting in the 9-hole and playing DH, where he went 1-3. Today he got another start, again DH’ing and hitting 9th. In the 6th inning he came up with 2 out and a runner on 3rd. The 1st pitch was a fastball that nicked the plate. Southpaw Nathan Beckett decided to try his luck with another fastball but this one stayed up in the zone and Mildren took out some of his frustration on it, slamming a 425 foot homer over left centre. Newcastle went on to win 9-5, Mildren 1-4. He said after the game, with a shrug, “I’ve been telling Quinny (skipper Quintin Fletcher) that I’ve still got some swings left in me. Nice to finally get a chance to prove it.”

29 Jan: Ismael Aguirre, only 26 y/o, slammed career HR numero 300 today as his Bandits succumbed to Auckland 7-6. Aguirre had 28HRs for the season, putting him a clear 3rd in the HR race. He was the 22nd player to reach the 300HR milestone but most believed he would finish a lot higher up the leaderboard than that. Alastair Mildren was of the opinion Aguirre would surpass his record and finish his career as the best HR hitter the AUNZBL had yet seen.

30 Jan: Ed Geoghegan was having an up-and-down season but the last week was definitely one of the ups. He hit .364/.462/.909, 4 of his 8 hits of the HR variety, to win PotW.

Notable Injuries

1 Jan: Sterling Powell (7-7, 3.36 ERA, 3.35 FIP, 1.23 WHIP) wouldn’t get to suit up for his 1st All Star Game, and possibly not for the rest of the season. The Central Coast SP had been diagnosed with a torn meniscus in his knee.

4 Jan: Whangarei’s Barry Fry (.289/.308/.379, 4HR) would miss the next 5 weeks with an intercostal strain.

28 Jan: Crocs’ slugger Keith D’Antonio (.246/.294/.463, 21HR) faced 5-6 weeks on the DL after he severely sprained his ankle.

29 Jan: The Sluggers were on a skid, having lost 8 straight. News that SP Walter Anglesey (7-8, 3.30 ERA, 3.39 FIP, 1.21 WHIP) would miss the rest of the season thanks to bone chips on his elbow wouldn’t have helped clubhouse morale any. They did manage to win that evening though, jousting with Hobart and eventually limping to a 1-0 victory.

29 Jan: Craig Hardy (.292/.354/.344, 1HR) was looking at about a month on the DL with elbow inflammation.

Notable Trades/Signings

13 Jan: The number 1 overall draft pick of 2044, 25 y/o catcher Tyler Pratly (.286/.351/.455, 4HR in 174PA), was on his way from Canberra to Newcastle, in exchange for 25 y/o 2B Andy Wells (.252/.279/.403, 9HR) and a pitching prospect.

16 Jan: 2048 Hurler of the Year, Dermott Downes (9-9, 4.62 ERA, 4.63 FIP, 1.34 WHIP) was heading from strugglers Melbourne to strugglers Auckland in return for 2 prospects.

29 Jan: 36 y/o CL Mauro Contreras (2-3, 19 sv) and a big wad of cash were headed from terrible Perth to slightly less terrible Wellington. In return, the Heat would receive 3 prospects.

Month Awards

Rookie of the Month: 26 y/o Aces 3B Ben Lovett. Only called up from AAA in January, Lovett had a great debut month, going .330/.353/.541, 36-109, with 16 runs scored, 11 doubles and 4HR hit, 21RBI, and 5 walks.

Hurler of the Month: Luke Bodkin was enjoying his move from Hobart to Christchurch. He won January’s HotM with a 4-1 record from 6 starts. His ERA was 1.59, his FIP 3.16, and his WHIP 0.64. He recorded 43 strikeouts from 45.1 IP and said he felt better than he had for several seasons. Bodkin was tied for the league’s best WHIP, at 1.06, and had started the most games (25).

Slugger of the Month: Austin Allan had a fantastic month. The ginger-haired DH, who currently sported a thick beard, hit .423/.451/.779, 44-104, with 8 doubles, 1 triple, and 9HR. He also scored 25 times and drove in 22 runners. He drew 7 free passes and stole 5 bases.

Last Year’s Top Players Watch

2049’s Top Rookies

2049 Rookie of the Year, Roland Beckett: Missed 6 weeks early in the season with injury but was trucking along nicely at this point. .311/.354/.522, 84-270, 31 runs, 12 doubles, 15HR, 42RBI, 20BB, 294PA.

Esteban Madrigal: Had also suffered through injury in 2050, having so far ended up on the DL 3 times. .296/.376/.528, 89-301, 53 runs, 14 doubles, 1 triple, 18HR, 49RBI, 38BB, 2SB, 343PA.

Stefan Lock: .254/.318/.489, 84-331, 49 runs, 12 doubles, 22HR, 57RBI, 29BB, 365PA.

2049’s Top Pitchers

2049 Hurler of the Year, Angelo Spear: Leading from the front of the Thunder rotation. 12-6 from 24 starts, 3.92 ERA, 3.38 FIP, 1.19 WHIP, 130K in 172.1IP. Currently led the league in BB/9 (0.84), and K/BB (8.13). Had only walked 16 hitters thus far.

Jay Cummins: Had 3 shutouts but was otherwise struggling in a poorly performing team. 8-14 from 23 starts, 4.32 ERA, 4.52 FIP, 1.28 WHIP, 94K from 162.1IP. Was on track for 20 losses.

Jing-zhong Ling: 9-12 from 23 starts, 3.96 ERA, 4.13 FIP, 1.40 WHIP, 111K from 150.0IP.

2049’s Top Hitters

2049 Slugger of the Year, Ismael Aguirre: Playing as the fans expected, though the analysts were still saying he was having a bit of a down season. .321/.375/.566, 151-470, 79 runs, 27 doubles, 2 triples, 28HR, 98RBI, 39BB, 515PA. He currently led the league in hits (151), XBH (57), and TB (266)

Zachary Woollett: His typical consistent self. .314/.389/.569, 113-360, 55 runs, 18 doubles, 1 triple, 24HR, 56RBI, 42BB, 409PA.

Gareth Orpen: Disappearing back into the murk of mediocrity or possibly just struggling in an awful team. .247/.334/.445, 101-409, 62 runs, 26 doubles, 2HR, 17HR, 60RBI, 47BB, 14SB, 464PA.

Other Notes

8 Jan: 29 y/o Baden Moore (80-71, 4.37 ERA, 4.36 FIP, 1.31 WHIP) was apparently looking at transitioning to 3B next season. Moore had signed a 5-year contract with Hobart during the offseason as an SP, but had a yearning to hit for a living instead, especially as it appeared his arm was falling off, and quick. Just last season his fastball was clocked in the mid-150’s but now he was struggling to get it to 140 km/h.

Skipper Yeong-sam Pak, who was unlikely to get his contract renewed at the end of the season, didn’t appear in favour of the idea. “Sure, he can hit in BP,” Pak said, “but so can a lot of pitchers. Whether he could do that in a game, as well as field a position, is another story.”

Pak had used Moore as a pinch-hitter twice so far in 2050, with Moore going 1-2.

GM Si Chin, known for his willingness to try different approaches, was more optimistic. “He wouldn’t be a power hitter, for sure, but I reckon he’d hold his own. We’ll wait and see and look at it again in the offseason.” Rumour also had Chin looking for a new job soon, even though he still had 3 years left to run on his contract.

#

Coastal Division: Adelaide (13-15) were doing enough to hang onto their division lead, with Darwin (11-17) dropping to 5 games back.

East-West Division: Still easily the strongest division in 2050, Brisbane (17-11) had fought their way to the lead, opening up a 2-game gap over Central Coast (13-15). Meanwhile, Newcastle (17-11) lurked in the rearview mirror of both teams, only 4 games back.

NZ Division: Christchurch (16-12) looked on track for their 1st playoffs appearance since 2037, with Whangarei (11-17) falling off the pace, finishing the month 7 games behind the Cowboys and 2 games below .500.

Southern Division: Sydney (20-8) leapfrogged Canberra (15-13) to finish January 3 games ahead.

Wildcard: The Thunder and Roos looked comfortable in the wildcard slots, with Canberra 4 games behind Newcastle. Whangarei were now 10 games back, and Darwin 11.

#

Ashley Snijders (.346/.467/.616, 32HR) continued to have a red hot season. While he’d dropped to 2nd in the batting race, he still led the league in OBP, SLG, OPS, wOBA (.453), RBI (107), and WAR (7.8). He was tied with Manny Gallo (.287/.323/.547, 32HR) in the HR stakes.

Rob Lane (.350/.441/.537, 13HR) was the player who’d overtaken Snijders at the top of the BA board. He also led the league in doubles, with 33.

Alan Sneddon (.307/.461/.466, 10HR) had pulled ahead in the steals category, his 40 stolen bases 8 more than next-best Martin Boston (.327/.351/.388, 0HR). Sneddon had also raced ahead on the walks board, with 105, and he continued to lead the league in triples, with 8.

Adrian Duggan (6-4, 2.59 ERA, 3.16 FIP, 1.06 WHIP) went 0-2 in January, but still led the league in ERA, FIP, WHIP, HR/9 (0.53), and WAR (4.6).

Robert Bywaters had 33 saves to be alone at the top of the saves leaderboard.

Standings, Feb 1

[Izz]

2050/2051 Season - February

Notable Performances

4 Feb: Elliot Cleaver went 5-5 to help the Roos punch their way past Canberra 10-8. His single in the 9th loaded the bases and helped pave the way for a 5-run inning, which saw Newcastle steal victory.

6 Feb: Manny Gallo hit .448/.500/.966, with 5HR, across the last 7 days to win PotW.

13 Feb: Ismael Aguirre won this PotW with a .500/.571/.792 performance. Surprisingly, only 2 of his 12-24 went over the fence, and he had just 1 other XBH, a double.

15 Feb: Danny Goodwin got to 2000 hits in a rush. He went 4-4, with 3 doubles, his final double in the 8th bringing up the milestone. Unfortunately Hobart was knocked over 5-1 by Darwin, but 37 y/o Goodwin was just happy to join the #2000 club. “It took me a while, didn’t it?” he said to journos after the game. “But I got there and that’s what matters.”

16 Feb: Hen-to Ling gave up only 4 hits and 2 walks to hold Whangarei scoreless, ensuring his Roos bounced to a 5-0 win. He struck out 3.

17 Feb: Nathan Beckett dominated Auckland today, allowing just 3 singles and 1 free pass. He fanned 8 and Christchurch rampaged to an 11-0 victory.

20 Feb: Ashley Snijders hit his 10th career major-league Grand Slam during this week, which also doubled as his 40th HR of the season, on his way to PotW. His 7-day stat-line was .393/.500/.821, with 4HR. He was on track to crack 150RBI, and also had 50HR in his sights. Or, more precisely, 51. Speaking after he hit #40, Snijders said, “Yeah, it’d be great to get 51, especially this year, when we’re on the same team but Al’s warming the bench.” When those comments were relayed to Mildren, he gave what had become his customary shrug in 2050 and said, “Nah, he won’t get there. What I’d really like though, is for him to earn me a ring.” Neither player had ever been part of a Championship-winning team, though Mildren had played in 5 postseasons to Snijders’ 4.

21 Feb: Snijders wanted 51 real bad. Today he hit 2HR to take him to 42 on the season. #42 was also his 11th career Grand Slam, but even more than that, it was a walkoff slammer, giving Newcastle a 10-6 victory over the Heat! Hitting .337 for the year, Snijders also had his eye on the Triple Crown, a feat no AUNZBL hitter had yet achieved.

26 Feb: Steven DeJong led Kununurra to a 5-0 victory over Perth, conceding just 4 hits while striking out 5.

27 Feb: Rhett Morrow was having a contract-drive season, and won this PotW on the back of a .542/.621/1.125 stat-line. His 13-24 included 2 doubles and 4HR.

27 Feb: Manuel Salinas went 5-6 as Canberra polished off Melbourne 13-9.

27 Feb: Lance Ralston blew away the Thunder, striking out 12 to see Brisbane beat their rivals 7-0. He allowed 6 hits and no walks. His 8th strikeout of the game was his 200th of the season.

28 Feb: Bob Bowden feasted on hapless Whangarei, going 5-6 as the Venom demolished the Sluggers 16-6, handing them their 7th straight loss.

Notable Injuries

20 Feb: Manuel Alou (.301/.364/.514, 27HR) would be missing from the Thunder lineup until the very end of the regular season. He’d strained a muscle in his rib cage.

21 Feb: Newcastle’s Andre England (.331/.384/.414, 3HR) had an oblique strain. It’d take around 3 weeks to heal.

Month Awards

Rookie of the Month: Norman Ladds picked up his 2nd RotM, the 25 y/o going .316/.463/.526 in February. He was 30-95, with 19 runs, 9 doubles, 1 triple, 3HR, 9RBI, 8 stolen bases and a whopping 26 walks. With 101 runs already on the season to go with 92 walks, he looked set to make the runs-walks double-double

Hurler of the Month: Bradley Fouracre had a strong month, going 5-0 with a 2.08 ERA, 4.02 WHIP, and 1.05 WHIP. He struck out 28 in 39.0 IP, and his 16 wins on the season gave him a share of that leaderboard with 5 other pitchers.

Slugger of the Month: On the last day of February, Ismael Aguirre put an emphatic stamp on the month, hitting 2HRs to help Brisbane crush his old team, the Thunder, 11-zip. The next morning he received news he’d won SotM. He hit .413/.466/.712 in February, 43-104, with 15 runs, 7 doubles, 8HR, 24RBI, and 12BB. For the year he was hitting .338/.392/.592, with 36HR, putting him 2nd on the BA board, and 3rd on the HR chart. He also led the league in hits (194), XBH (72), and TB (340).

Other Notes

Coastal Division: Adelaide (15-11) were cruising in the Coastal, with Darwin (12-14) finishing the month 8 games behind, well out of the race.

East-West Division: Brisbane (17-9) continued their drive for pennant glory, with the Thunder (13-13) unable to keep up the pace, falling to 6 games back. However, Newcastle (19-7) were advancing as the final straight approached, just 2 games back in 2nd place. It might well end up that the 4-game series between the 2 sides on the 12-15th of March would decide the division winner, though Brisbane did appear to have a slightly easier run home.

NZ Division: Whangarei (10-16) finally burned out, finishing the month 16 games behind Christchurch (19-7), who hit the afterburners in February, and continued to defy expectation (the experts had picked them to finish dead-last before the season began). It was the Cowboys’ starting pitchers who were getting it done for them, with their rotation ranked the best in the AUNZBL.

Southern Division: Sydney (15-11) extended their lead over Canberra (12-14) to 6 games and it would take a terrible collapse in March for them to lose out on the division.

Wildcard: This looked likely to be the 1st year that 3 teams from the same division (East-West) would make the postseason, with Newcastle holding the 1st slot, Central Coast the 2nd, and daylight (7 games) back to Canberra.

#

Rob Lane (.340/.427/.520, 16HR) continued to lead the BA race, though his power was well down on last season.

Ashley Snijders (.333/.456/.619, 42HR) only hit .272 in February, though his power game made up for that, with the veteran 1B slugging 10HRs during the month. He led the league in HR by 4, and also had the best OBP, SLG, OPS, wOBA (.445), most RBI (135), and best WAR (9.0). His WAR was 1.4 better than 2nd-placed Aguirre. Snijders had also achieved the runs-walks double-double, with 105 runs and 116 walks.

Alan Sneddon (.298/.441/.447, 12HR) also had a down month, although he continued to lead the league in walks (120) and SB (45).

Brock Wakely (.299/.405/.605, 34HR) had the league’s best ISO, at .306.

Auckland’s Brendon Stennings (.328/.370/.495, 16HR) had 38 doubles to his name, 3 better than anyone else.

Lance Ralston (16-9, 3.44 ERA, 3.31 FIP, 1.12 WHIP) was one of the cluster of pitchers with 16 wins. He had the league’s best FIP and WAR (5.4) going into March, and had broken the 200 strikeout barrier already, with 204. His 9.24 K/9 was also best in the league.

Luke Bodkin (14-10, 2.93 ERA, 3.54 FIP, 1.04 WHIP) was enjoying being the big dog in a rejuvenated Cowboys rotation. He had the league’s best WHIP.

Teammate Nathan Beckett (16-6, 3.40 ERA, 3.83 FIP, 1.12WHIP) was Christchurch’s #2 starter. He’d made his 1st All Star Game this year and seemed to be getting stronger as the season progressed. At the close of February he led the AUNZBL in H/9 (7.28) and OAVG (.215).

Bywaters had 39 saves so far this season, leading the other closers in the league by 1.

Standings, Mar 1

[Izz]

2050/2051 Season - March

Notable Performances

1 Mar: Snijders started off March with a roar. While his lads lost 6-3 to Cairns, Snijders was 4-4 on the night, blasting 2HR to take him to 44 for the season. He was also back in Triple Crown contention, his BA rising to .338, putting him only 2 points behind Rob Lane.

5 Mar: Clint Aitcheson stopped the Diggers in their tracks, allowing only 5 hits and no walks in Brisbane’s 7-0 victory. He struck out 8.

6 Mar: Ismael Aguirre snagged another PotW, hitting .480/.606/1.080 with 4HR. He finished the week hitting .341 for the season, 4 points clear on the BA board.

6 Mar: Christchurch claimed the NZ division with a 3-2 victory over Sydney.

8 Mar: Adrian Duggan shut the Roos down, doing so on the back of 3 hits, 2 walks and 2 strikeouts. Central Coast cruised to a 5-0 victory.

8 Mar: Lindsay Colson brought up hit number 2000 today, as Canberra edged past Perth 8-7. The hit, a single, came in the 8th, and 2 batters later Willem Baldwin hit a slammer to put Canberra ahead. 33 y/o Colson was in his 12th season in the majors.

11 Mar: Young-tae Lee joined the 2000-hit club as well, going 1-5 as Brisbane beat Wellington 6-3. Lee got the milestone hit in the 8th inning, as part of the 3-run rally that put Brisbane in front. After the game he told a gaggle of journos, “Hits are nice, but Championships are better.” The 34 y/o was hoping to add a 6th ring to his collection this season.

13 Mar: Angelo Rankin hit .462/.500/.808 over the last 7 days on his way to PotW. He hit 3 doubles and 2HR.

13 Mar: Snijders slugged HR# 45 today as Newcastle defeated Brisbane 7-1. 51 was looking more and more unlikely.

15 Mar: It was being talked about as potentially one of the greatest chokes in AUNZBL history or else one of the greatest comebacks. Sydney had started the month 6 games ahead of Canberra but so far in March had gone 5-9. Today was the last game of a 4-game stand in Canberra and the Cavalry had trampled all over their foes, winning this game 4-1 to sweep the series. Canberra were 11-3 in March and today’s win was not only their 9th straight but also put them equal at the top of the division with the faltering Blue Sox. It promised to be a riveting final 9 days of the season for the 2 teams.

16 Mar: Canberra won their 10th straight, disposing of Cairns 11-3. Sydney also jagged a win, beating Auckland 9-3. With the 2 wildcards a minimum of 5 games ahead, whoever lost this pennant race would also miss the postseason.

17 Mar: Newcastle beat Wellington 4-2, and Snijders clubbed HR #46.

17 Mar: The Venom clinched the Coastal Division with a 15-0 whipping of Hobart.

17 Mar: Canberra wouldn’t die, making it 11 in a row with a 4-2 win over the Crocs. Sydney beat Auckland 6-3 to keep things tied at the top of the Southern.

18 Mar: Both the Roos and Thunder clinched playoff spots today, beating Wellington and Christchurch respectively, thus ensuring that 3 teams from the East-West Division would play postseason ball.

18 Mar: Ashley Snijders was currently hitting .334, 4th overall, still with a shot at claiming the AUNZBL’s 1st ever hitter’s Triple Crown (HR: 46; RBI: 144). But a new figure also with a chance at the hitter’s holy grail popped into media consciousness today. Ismael Aguirre hit 2HR in Brisbane’s 17-3 shellacking of the Pioneers, and was 3-5 on the night, with 4RBI. This put him only 2HR and 2RBI behind Snijders, and he was already leading the league in BA, hitting .342.

18 Mar: Sydney poked their noses in front, shutting Auckland out 4-0, while Canberra finally faltered, their winning streak ended by Cairns to the tune of 5-4.

19 Mar: Brisbane went down 2-1 to Kununurra but they were still partying, as news came through that Newcastle had also lost, meaning the division was all theirs.

19 Mar: Sydney once again shut the Metros out, this time winning 2-0. Canberra lost 4-2 to Cairns to fall 2 games behind and would need another big effort in the final series of the regular season, as well as Sydney again losing their way, to make the postseason.

19 Mar: Neither Snijders or Aguirre cleared the fence today, though Snijders’ 0-3 meant his BA dropped to .333, while Aguirre’s 2-4 put his BA up to .343.

20 Mar: Carl Bristcoe claimed the season’s last PotW with a .448/.500/1.069 effort, including 3 doubles and 5HR. His 37HR for the season had him tied for 4th place on that board, while his 108RBI was good enough for 3rd behind the dueling Snijders and Aguirre.

21 Mar: Jay Cummins had been harshly brought back to reality this season regarding the vagaries of being a starting pitcher, but while he’d racked up 18 losses, he’d also thrown 3 shutouts prior to this start. And today, in his final outing of the season, he etched his name in the record books, equaling Owen Higgins’ 2042 season record of 4 shutouts. Cummins brought up the feat against Kununurra, allowing just 6 hits and 2 walks, striking out 4, in the 9-0 Fury win. After the game he seemed on a rollercoaster of emotions, saying, “Yeah, it’s always great to go the distance and shut a side out, and it’s awesome to have done so 4 times this season. But mate, what I wouldn’t give for my wins-losses to read 18-12 instead of the other way around. I’ve pitched my heart out this season but most of the time it seems like the rub of the green has gone against me. Then you get days like today, and yeah, well, what do you say? Just have to enjoy the ride, I guess.”

21 Mar: Sydney won their 5th straight, getting past Melbourne 5-3, but Canberra weren’t going away, overcoming Hobart 13-8 to keep the division alive.

21 Mar: Aguirre went 1-5, with 1RBI, while Snijders was 1-3, with 0RBI. Aguirre was hitting .342, with 44HR and 143RBI, while Snijders was at .333, with 46HR and 144RBI.

22 Mar: In a pitcher’s game, Melbourne hit a 2-out walk-off HR in the bottom of the 9th to down Sydney 1-0. The hero of the day was Aces’ SP Zach Wyeth, who conceded just 3 hits and 2 walks, fanning 5, to get the shutout W. Meanwhile Canberra got past Hobart 4-3 despite a shaky 9th where they let in 2. Things remained interesting in the Southern.

22 Mar: Rookie southpaw Bruno Budd, promoted to Darwin’s rotation in the 2nd-half of the season, helped the Diggers uproot Newcastle 10-0. He allowed just 6 hits and 1 walk, striking out 6.

22 Mar: Brodie Backhouse had made a successful return from his year-long injury layoff, and even though he’d spent 2 more months on the DL with a hamstring strain midseason he still looked every inch the menacing closer. This day he came out with Christchurch having scored 2 in the bottom of the 9th and the tying run on deck. He didn’t waste any time, striking out the next hitter to record save #26 for the season. It was also the 400th save of his career, making him the 1st AUNZBL player to reach that mark!!

22 Mar: Ashley Snijders went 0-4, his average dropping to .330 and essentially removing him from Triple Crown contention. Meanwhile Aguirre was also ohfer, going 0-2, but he did sac-fly a runner home, putting him equal with Snijders on the RBI board.

23 Mar: Sydney beat Melbourne 10-4 and Canberra overcame Hobart 6-4 to set up an intriguing finish.

24 Mar: The Blue Sox hiccupped, conceding 5 runs across the 6th to 8th innings to lose 5-3 to Melbourne. The Cavalry showed no such nerves, dispatching Hobart 8-1. A sudden death playoff awaited.

24 Mar: Aguirre went 1-3 but cruelly had the batting title stolen from him by Newcastle’s Andre England. England was 2-4 to finish the season hitting .339. He had more than 100 fewer PAs than Aguirre, but would still be declared the winner. Aguirre didn’t seem too worried, though, preferring to focus on winning back-to-back Championships. “We can do it, definitely,” he said, “even with the next week off!”

25 Mar: Sydney scored 4 in the 1st inning and held the lead through the rest of the game, eventually winning 6-4 to progress to the postseason. Canberra had now gone 10 years without making a playoff appearance.

Notable Injuries

2 Mar: Christos Hutchinson’s (.319/.374/.408, 3HR) season might be over. He’d strained his back and faced 3-4 weeks recovery time.

5 Mar: The Thunder would be without Sean Carr (.306/.370/.473, 16HR) for the rest of the regular season and at least the 1st round of the playoffs after he was diagnosed with a fractured foot.

15 Mar: Logan Neilson (8-13, 5.08 ERA, 4.64 FIP, 1.51 WHIP) was gutted. The 40 y/o, #5 on the all-time wins leaderboard with 188, had missed last year’s postseason due to an inflamed shoulder. And once again he’d been struck down with the same ailment, but this time even more severely. Not only would he miss the postseason but he was looking at 7 months on the DL. A free agent once this year’s proceedings concluded, Neilson couldn’t put into words how he was feeling, choking up every time he tried to talk about it at the presser.

20 Mar: Vince Hudswell (.278/.333/.474, 22HR) would be missing from Brisbane’s lineup for the last series of the season, and possibly for their 2nd-round entry to the postseason as well.

22 Mar: Zach Barlow (.336/.380/.574, 29HR) was diagnosed with a sprained ankle. He would be unavailable for the last 3 games of Canberra’s push to the postseason and, if they made it, the playoffs as well.

24 Mar: Newcastle would be without regular 2B Daniel Wise (.307/.366/.439, 8HR) for the postseason after he sprained his ankle.

Other Notes

20 Mar: Auckland fired skipper Randall Marsh. The Metros had failed to fire his 2 seasons at the helm and so Marsh was on his way. He felt, however, that firing him 4 days before the end of the season was a “pointless exercise in flexing.”

#

Andre England (.339/.389/.423, 3HR) was crowned this year’s batting champ.

Ismael Aguirre (.338/.397/.607, 44HR) might’ve been pipped at the post in the BA race, but he finished the season atop a number of other categories. He led the league with 223 hits, 86XBH, and 400 total bases. His 400TB gave him 2nd spot on the all-time season leaderboard behind Mildren (407), though Aguirre already owned that spot, as well as spots 3-6. He also finished tied at the top of this season's SLG board and the RBI (144) list.

Ashley Snijders (.328/.454/.607, 46HR) didn’t quite get the Triple Crown but no-one could deny he’d been dominant in 2050. He finished at the head of the following boards: OBP, SLG - tied, OPS, HR, RBI - tied, BB (137), runs - tied (119) wOBA (.438), and WAR (9.8).

As well as Snijders, the following players recorded runs-walks double-doubles (Snijders was the only player to get a runs-walks-RBI triple-triple):

Norman Ladds (.278/.387/.481, 25HR, 119 runs, 109BB)
Alan Sneddon (.298/.436/.444, 13HR, 110 runs, 136BB)
Young-tae Lee (.285/.406/.420, 15HR, 106 runs, 110BB)
Manuel Salinas (.320/.436/.394, 3HR, 106 runs, 110BB)

One player other than Aguirre reached 200 hits for the season, Auckland’s Brendon Stennings (.334/.374/.501, 17HR). Stennings successfully hit 219 times. It was the 3rd straight season he’d passed 200 hits.

22 y/o rookie Kununurra CF Arthur Lee set a new season record for strikeouts, getting beaten 213 times. Lee was only the 2nd player to strike out more than 200 times in 1 season. The old record had been held by Maurice Downes, who’d been sent back on strikes 211 times in 2029.

No pitcher won 20 games in 2050. The closest was Christchurch’s Nathan Beckett (19-7, 3.27 ERA, 3.67 FIP, 1.10 WHIP). Beckett also had the best H/9 (7.25) and OAVG (.215).He also broke the 200 K barrier, recording 206 strikeouts for the season.

Lance Ralston (18-10, 3.71 ERA, 3.30 FIP, 1.14 WHIP) was definitely putting his hand up for HotY. He finished with the league’s best FIP, best K/9 (9.22), most Ks (226), and best WAR (6.0).

Central Coast’s Edwin Kerr (16-12, 3.48 ERA, 3.73 FIP, 1.13 WHIP) also made it to 200 strikeouts, finishing with 204.

Angelo Spear (16-11, 3.79 ERA, 3.61 FIP, 1.12 WHIP) set a new season record for least walks per 9 innings, with a 0.685 mark. He was the 1st player since 2029 to walk less than 1 hitter every 9 innings during the season, and eclipsed the previous record set by Bert Blanksby in 2026 of 0.822. In 249.2 IP Spear only walked 19 batters. He also led the league in K/BB, at 9.21.

Robert Bywaters and Bryan White finished tied atop the saves leaderboard, both with 44. Rhett Thurley finished 1 save back.

Standings, EORS

[Izz]

2050 Division Finals

Game 1 - Adelaide Venom vs Central Coast Thunder

This game remained close until the 7th, the scored locked at 2-2. In the bottom of the 7th, however, things kicked off. The 1st 2 batters were quickly retired, but then Justin Auger hit a solo HR for the Thunder. This seemed to rattle a tiring Karl Lang, who gave up a single, walk and rbi-double, before loading the bases via another free pass. He went to the showers but reliever Al Heathershaw gave Jay Keppell a 2-2 pitch he could pull and pull he did, the ball sailing down the line, staying fair and heading over the fence for a Grand Slam. That was the final scoring act of the game, with the Thunder winning 8-2.

Angelo Spear (8.2IP, 8H, 2R, 1ER, 0BB, 4K) went deep for the win, while Karl Lang (6.2IP, 9H, 7ER, 4BB, 7K) wasn’t travelling too bad until he lost his way in the 7th. Brett Worsfold homered for Adelaide, while Jacob Lindner also went deep for the Thunder.

Game 1 - Sydney Blue Sox vs Christchurch Cowboys

This was all Cowboys, Sydney’s postseason malaise appearing to extend into a 3rd-straight campaign. Luke Bodkin was sublime, pulled an inning short of a possible postseason shutout, having already thrown 114 pitches. After the game, he was upbeat about not having a chance to get the achievement, saying, “I’d rather end the postseason with a Championship ring than throw my arm off in the 1st game and wind up being useless to my team down the stretch.”

Bodkin wasn’t the only star, Ed Geoghegan’s 7th-inning Grand Slam his 2nd HR of the night, making him responsible for driving in 5 of Christchurch’s 7 runs. Final score: 7-0 Cowboys. Bodkin (8.0IP, 3H, 0ER, 2BB, 10K) was virtually unhittable, while Bob Davies (6.1IP, 6H, 3ER, 1BB, 6K) did enough to get the loss. Angelo Rankin also homered for Christchurch.

Game 2 - Adelaide Venom vs Central Coast Thunder

The Venom got on board first, in the 1st, but fell behind in the 5th when Stewart Clemmet hit a 2-out 3-run HR. They got a run back in the 7th, and tied proceedings in the top of the 8th via a Keiran Pickford solo HR. Next up, Carl Bristcoe hit his 3rd double of the evening, tying the AUNZBL postseason game record. He would score the go-ahead run 2 outs later and the following batter would drive in another run. Final score: 5-3 Venom, who were clearly the better offensive team. Justin Trembath (7.2IP, 3H, 3ER, 2BB, 8K) got the win, while Adrian Duggan (6.2IP, 9H, 2ER, 0BB, 6K) left the game with the lead, and finished with a no-decision.

Game 2 - Sydney Blue Sox vs Christchurch Cowboys

The Blue Sox bounced back in emphatic style, batting around in the 1st to score 6 (Gilbert Boyson and Greg Bricknell both contributing 2-run HRs before an out was recorded). They scored at regular intervals thereafter, while Christchurch’s offense failed to get going, and their defense failed them (4 errors, though none led to runs). Trent Allen and Brock Wakely also homered for the visitors, with the final score 12-2 Sydney. Nathan Beckett (0.2IP, 6H, 6ER, 0BB, 0K) had a horror debut postseason outing, while Bradley Fouracre (7.0IP, 7H, 2ER, 4BB, 3K) looked as comfortable as a guy who’d pitched in 4 previous playoff campaigns.

Game 3 - Adelaide Venom vs Central Coast Thunder

Auger and Clemmet’s 2nd HRs of the series weren’t enough to lift the Thunder to victory, with Hao Li and Bob Bowden offering up 2-run blasts for Adelaide to see them eventually win 7-3. Edwin Kerr (5.1IP, 8H, 5ER, 2BB, 4K) threw 106 pitches in his relatively short outing, while Karl Bell (7.2IP, 8H, 3R, 2ER, 1BB, 6K) only threw 8 more in 2.1 innings of extra work.

Game 3 - Sydney Blue Sox vs Christchurch Cowboys

Christchurch scored 4 in the 2nd, 3 via a Ben Zorn bomb, and kept the squeeze on Sydney, Sydney’s only extra-base hit an 8th-inning solo HR to Gilbert Boyson. Final score: 5-3 Cowboys. Jesus Rodriguez (2.2IP, 6H, 5ER, 2BB, 2K) got pummelled out of the game early, while Carlo Avery (6.2IP, 3H, 2R, 1ER, 6BB, 6K) had trouble finding the plate at times but walked away with the win.

Game 4 - Adelaide Venom vs Central Coast Thunder

The Thunder had their chances but couldn’t convert many, while Adelaide feasted on some lacklustre pitching to ease their way into the Preliminary Finals. Final score: 10-2 Adelaide. Stefan Lock and Isaac Blythe both went deep for Central Coast, while Adelaide had 3 players clear the fence: Austin Allan, Keiran Pickford, and Leo Lawless. Angelo Spear (5.1IP, 14H, 7ER, 0BB, 2K) didn’t walk any hitters but gave up too many offerings over the heart of the plate. He got the L, while Lang (5.1IP, 8H, 1ER, 1BB, 4K) got the series-winning W.

Game 4 - Sydney Blue Sox vs Christchurch Cowboys

The Cowboys scored 4 runs across the 1st 3 innings to take the early lead (Adam Krajancic and Terence McLaren hitting solo HRs), and added another in the 5th. A 3-run Drew Tierney HR in the bottom of the 5th made things interesting but that was all the scoring as Beckett shut up shop for the Cowboys, and Blue Sox rookie reliever Kent Tillett allowed just 1 hit and 1BB in 3.1IP. Final score: 5-3 Christchurch, booking them a berth in the Preliminary Finals. Bob Davies (5.2IP, 6H, 5R, 4ER, 3BB, 10K) looked great in patches and flustered in others on his way to his 2nd loss of the series, while Beckett (8.0IP, 3H, 3ER, 2BB, 4K) looked far better than he had 3 days prior.

[Izz]

2050 Preliminary Finals

Game 1 - Adelaide Venom vs Brisbane Bandits

Both starting pitchers were on their game and with the score locked at 2-2 going into the 9th it seemed likely this one would head into extra innings. Brodie Backhouse came onto the mound, Brisbane apparently confident their lineup would do the job in the bottom of the inning but wanting to make sure Adelaide didn’t jag any runs. Backhouse turned out to be the wrong move as, with 1 out, Hao Li latched onto a 1st-pitch fastball and deposited it 437 feet back over centrefield. Norman Ladds led off with a single in the bottom of the inning, but Gordon Appleby ground into a double play and Young-tae Lee struck out swinging to end the game. Final score: 3-2 Adelaide. Lance Ralston (8.0IP, 5H, 2ER, 2BB, 8K) had a great night but his offense didn’t give him enough support, while Trembath (7.1IP, 5H, 2ER, 2BB, 6K) was also good. Brendan Knopp got the win, Robert Bywaters the save and Backhouse the loss.

Game 1 - Christchurch Cowboys vs Newcastle Roos

Once again Bodkin dominated, and once again he was pulled within sight of a shutout, this time after giving up a double to lead off the 9th. Meanwhile, the Cowboys hit 2HRs in the 1st (Norman Stone, Rankin) to go ahead. A rusty Roos’ outfit never looked like scoring. 4-0 Cowboys for 1st blood. Bodkin (8.1IP, 3H, 0ER, 1BB, 6K) was just magnificent, while Angelo Pagan (7.0IP, 8H, 4ER, 3BB, 4K) got the loss.

Game 2 - Adelaide Venom vs Brisbane Bandits

It was unlikely the vaunted Brisbane offense would stay quiet 2 nights in a row, and 2 doubles in the bottom of the 1st ensured 2 runs went on the board. They scored another brace in the 3rd, though these runs were all about hustle than power. A Bristcoe HR in the 4th got Adelaide into the game but Brisbane were able to keep the Venom at arm’s length to eventually win 5-2. Clint Aitcheson (7.1IP, 8H, 2ER, 1BB, 9K) got the win, while Bell (3.1IP, 6H, 4ER, 3BB, 4K) got an early shower. Backhouse bounced back from his outing the previous night to record his 1st save of the postseason, though he took 21 pitches to get through the 9th.

Game 2 - Christchurch Cowboys vs Newcastle Roos

Christchurch looked for all money to have this one in the bag going into the bottom of the 8th, leading by 4 after overcoming an early 2-run deficit. Reliever Samuel Dean had control issues, plunking 2 batters on his way to recording the 1st 2 outs of the inning before getting replaced by Randall Zorn. That was a move Cowboys’ skipper Ivan Munoz would be sure to lose sleep over as Zorn allowed a single to load the bases before Glen Lock doubled all 3 runners home to put the Roos within 1. The nightmare wasn’t over, as Andre England (with 3HRs during the regular season) clubbed his 2nd dinger of the night to put Newcastle ahead, where they’d stay. Final score: 8-7 Newcastle. Beckett (3.2IP, 8H, 3R, 2ER, 1BB, 5K) continued his up-and-down postseason, though it was the 3rd reliever of the night, Zorn, who would wear the loss. Vince Delaney (6.1IP, 8H, 7R, 6ER, 1BB, 7K) wasn’t great, but would get out of this one with a no-decision.

Game 3 - Adelaide Venom vs Brisbane Bandits

4 runs in the 5th separated the 2 sides come the end of the game. 2 errors from Adelaide SS Brett Worsfold sparked the rally and none of those runs were recorded as earned. It was too much for the Venom to come back from, even though they had their share of baserunners. Final score: 6-2 Brisbane. Lang (7.0IP, 9H, 5R, 1ER, 3BB, 4K) took the loss, while Wilson Lara (6.1IP, 10H, 2ER, 2BB, 5K) struggled to keep the ball low in the zone but still walked away with a win. Brisbane were yet to hit a HR this series.

Game 3 - Christchurch Cowboys vs Newcastle Roos

The Roos’ solitary blot on the scorecard was a 6th-inning solo HR to Glen Lock. Snijders was 0-3 to be hitting .091 for the series, with cleanup man Elliot Cleaver also struggling, his 0-4 putting his series BA at .083. The Cowboys didn’t run away with the game, neither side scoring until the 6th, but they did enough. Final score: 4-1 Christchurch. Bartolo Gonzales cleared the fence for Christchurch. Avery (8.0IP, 4H, 1ER, 1BB, 9K) brought his best stuff to get the win, while Brock Casey (6.2IP, 5H, 3R, 1ER, 1BB, 7K) said after the game he felt “unlucky” to be the losing pitcher.

Game 4 - Adelaide Venom vs Brisbane Bandits

Brisbane exploded out of the blocks in this one, Lee’s Grand Slam providing 4 of their 5 1st-inning runs. Adam Guiney added a solo HR to the score in the 2nd, and Lee hit his 2nd HR of the night in the 3rd to give the Bandits a hefty 7-0 lead. Adelaide had no answer, Lance Ralston picking his spots with ease. Gordon ‘Rocket’ Appleby hit a rocket into the centrefield bleachers in the 7th for the last scoring act of the game. Final score: 9-2 Brisbane, earning them the chance to go back-to-back. Ralston (7.0IP, 5H, 2ER, 0BB, 5K) was miserly, while Trembath’s (0.1IP, 4H, 5ER, 1BB, 1K) night lasted all of 28 pitches.

Potential Rookie of the Year Norman Ladds left the game with a sprained finger in the 7th and would be on the DL for the duration of the Championship series.

Game 4 - Christchurch Cowboys vs Newcastle Roos

Both teams got hits aplenty, though Christchurch registered a mammoth 8 XBH (7 doubles, 1HR) in comparison to Newcastle’s 1 double. Still, things stayed tight through 6, Newcastle overcoming an early 4-run deficit to tie things up by the 4th and again came back in the 6th to tie the game at 5. Veteran RF Dylan Cresswell had the final say for Christchurch, though, crushing a Grand Slam into the upper tier over rightfield to put the Cowboys out of reach. Final score: 9-5 Christchurch, and their remarkable season would continue into the final stanza. Bodkin (5.2IP, 6H, 5ER, 3BB, 7K) came down to earth somewhat, though he was still getting the ball to sing and could’ve got the W next to his name if Xadreque Neiva hadn’t blown the held. Pagan (4.1IP, 10H, 5ER, 1BB, 3K) was Newcastle’s starter, though it was Jerry Blythe who got the L. Norman Stone was 4-4 for Christchurch, with 2 doubles.

4 Grand Slams had been hit so far this postseason.