The Lokasi Elite League

[Ruwisc]

2024 Halfway Point

Good time for a checkin on each team. How are things going compared to how we thought they would at the start of the season?

Hokrof BC
25-70 (20th)
What's going well: More than you would expect for a team with this bad a record. 1B Pokoni Merefife, 20, looks like he'll have a career-best season, and the bullpen hasn't been relegation-caliber.
What's going badly: The actual results, I suppose? Hokrof has the fewest runs scored and the worst rotation ERA in the league, and while a majority of the team stats aren't literally 20th place, there's enough there to suggest that none of this is a fluke. The team's Pythagorean record is 3 games better than where they actually are, but that's still a clear league-worst.

Mithazni BC
33-61 (19th)
What's going well: Despite issues with injuries, the rotation has been roughly league-average. They will miss Sosytse Paweshono the rest of the year, and Mesa Tselsiko is currently out, but will be back soon. On the offensive side, 2B Oma Feputso has been genuinely excellent.
What's going badly: Most everything else. This has been the league's second-worst bullpen and third-worst offense overall. Shepashi Micheni has been even worse than advertised, and at the start of the year I was already calling him the worst regular in the EL - that's a -3.7 WAR in the first half, including a sub-.200 slugging percentage (much less his batting average) while also being a poor defender in center field (though much less embarrassingly on that end).

Sitache BC
37-58 (18th)
What's going well: The duo of 1B Fomo Tirma and SS Wasi Tsewayo have been excellent, as you would expect. More surprisingly, Peyaka Nit has been a great find for his first turn through a rotation at this level - he had previously only started during his time playing part-time in the Tsawemoko state league, and was just OK out of the Sitache bullpen last season. During the season preview, he was being listed as the closer, but never actually made a relief appearance - jumped in as the third starter and has quickly become either the ace or just level with Eshan Kohopa.
What's going badly: The rest of the offense besides Tirma and Tsewayo has combined to produce -0.8 WAR in the first half, and the bullpen has been the league's weakest, a quarter of a run of ERA above Mithazni's. Just as a point of data, closer Tsario Nufeka, clearly the team's best reliever, has an ERA over 5.

Cheshek BC
38-56 (17th)
What's going well: The rotation has been pretty solid, especially with the emergence of Kimyu Nele as a reliable option to go along with the steady Tosolefi Loap and Risei Late. They are battling injuries currently, with Tonna Tsetanipacho and Kashuma Paemio out for at least a little while longer.
What's going badly: This team's offense has completely dried up, with only their two stars, 18-year-old Syshawe Arachihe and veteran catcher Epencho Posheni, being worth a thing. Injuries have hit other parts of the team too, with SS Ketso Kofmi and closer Chysho Sofiulo both being out another couple of weeks. Cheshek was not supposed to be in danger of relegation this season, so those injured players had better come back ready to rock the second half.

Akashemo United
43-52 (16th)
What's going well: CF Ramrasha Liposeli is having a nice breakout season at the plate, getting extra runway with the trade of Shashacheta Kukoteache to Muni. He has arguably outperformed star OF Tseiriki Tushifo. Overall, the offense has outperformed what they were expected to be, though not enough to be above-average yet.
What's going badly: if I'm reading the stats correctly, Akashemo has already cost themselves about four games in the standings through defense alone. The Tushifo-to-center field experiment is long over, he's only started 29 games there and is typically playing left again, though Liposeli is also not a good center fielder. Tushifo has also struggled at the plate by comparison to last year, so it might be that his 2023 71-homer season was a fluke.

Shunna Eagles
43-52 (15th)
What's going well: OF Topeshe Tsaruo is a legitimate star here in his rookie season, leading the batting race by over 20 points and also topping the league in a few other stats, most notably in OPS. That has helped the offense be a bit better than expected, even having sent RF Okekola Narupu to Semyof in a trade.
What's going badly: The Eagles are a victim of circumstance to find themselves in 15th - it's more that the teams that were expected to be worse than them (Meka, Nokir, and especially Kupore) are doing well. They don't have a good pitching staff overall, but we knew that was going to be the case.

Tsapna BC
47-48 (14th)
What's going well: It is hard to find positives here, to be honest. This is supposed to be one of the league's elite teams and it just isn't. Catcher Pusituli Fomochi, brought in from Cheshek and now on his 4th EL team, has been really good - at 31, he's hitting more like he did in his early 20s with Fampalo than recently. LF Uoro Toyerno has also taken a step forward; though he's not an MVP contender, he's hitting better than in his breakout season from last year.
What's going badly: It would also be nice if there was one key thing to blame Tsapna's struggles on, but they've just been mediocre across the board. Like the Eagles, their position in the table is not helped by the high number of above-.500 teams the league has. The rotation probably takes the biggest public criticism, with Mua Wyranu again out injured, Lomunu Awia struggling with the aging curve, Setsinak Perano picking up a new minor injury every other start, and supposed ace Feli Ykiteno now back in the bullpen.

Shunna Municipal
48-47 (13th)
What's going well: The opposite of Tsapna, no immediate standouts but every part of the team is working a bit better than it was supposed to. Pilima Ayawetsi is having a late-career renaissance - the 2012 MVP (with rival National) is on pace for his best season since 2014. The lineup was supposed to be league-worst, and they're 16th in runs scored instead; the rotation was supposed to be average, but it's been better than that; and the bullpen was supposed to be good, but it's been great.
What's going badly: Not that much, but rotation health has been a concern, with Sofiulo, Reopo and Chatsol all out for the season (though they knew Chatsol would be out) and Emi Kohopa currently on the mend. They must slightly regret trading Nawin Posheni to Akashemo at this point.

Amnanache BC
49-46 (12th)
What's going well: They needed a bit of a franchise reset after being such a pitching-focused but ultimately average team, and the offense has definitely improved. 2B Peche Iyikio, already their best hitter previously, is on pace for career highs in almost everything, and the complementary pieces like 3B Ripke Kaitsomine, LF Taekeche Punisha, and CF Marte Choap have been much-needed improvements. Kafaki Kohopa has also surprised by taking the leap to becoming the team's ace - they don't really miss the departed Tsai Reyolafa at all.
What's going badly: Amnanache started off quite hot, sitting in first place after three weeks, but that optimism has faded as the team slumped through April and especially May. While Amnanache's hitters have improved, their defense really hasn't, costing them about three wins so far. The bullpen has also not been up to par on the whole, ranking in the bottom half of the league.

Nokir BC
50-45 (11th)
What's going well: the duo of OF Saruruso Rishisite and 1B Fimshi Piso has been transcendent, tied for the league lead in homers and leading what was an unproven offense to a much greater run-scoring record than we had thought would happen. Nokir was a potential relegation candidate going into the season, but it would take a near-unprecedented collapse for that to happen now.
What's going badly: Merisiri Punisha is rotting on the bench, having only made 34 starts to this point behind the plate, losing time to the defensively brilliant but much more offensively limited Shykim Riali. While Cheshore Matsef has been good in the closer's role, they have also struggled with having enough healthy arms in the bullpen.

Keleri BC
51-44 (10th)
What's going well: Despite having Atsi Keana, the lineup's lynchpin, out, the offense has persevered and is doing OK overall. 2B Mapisiu Kohopa has taken a leadership role this season, already bettering some of his counting numbers from the 2023 season.
What's going badly: Definitely not used to seeing Keleri 10th. Even though they are just two games back of 4th place right now, and 8 games back of the leader, these are nervous times in the baseball empire. Only twice in the history of the EL have they finished outside the top 5. The primary culprit would be the injury bug, with three of their top 4 starters currently out (Shykim Rekute is done for the year) and star SS Atsi Keana facing an unclear return timeline from his elbow injury on opening day. The new catching tandem has also not been up to the team's usual standard.

Lutrul BC
51-44 (9th)
What's going well: This year's Lutrul was always going to be a more offensive team, but it's nice to see them tied for the league lead in homers. After a down year in 2023, top hitter and 1B Ilye Nofetso is back to his former self, and first-time ELer Fayafo Sheotel has been better than I expected.
What's going badly: Lutrul was in first place at the end of April, then had a worse record than Hokrof in May. What happened? Well, they did play the Oaks, Semyof, Keleri, and National back-to-back, so that doesn't help. They've somewhat rebounded since, winning 3 of the last 4 series, but if Lutrul really wants to play with the big clubs, they're gonna have to beat a few of them. Starting pitching has continued to be a weakness, but we also knew that would happen.

Meka BC
51-44 (8th)
What's going well: Every moment that Meka gets in the EL feels like a bonus, but when I look over the stats, it's easy to wonder how they're not even higher than 8th place. Undoubtedly a top-5 lineup through the season's first half, the league's top rotation ERA, with Wefo and Pese looking like an anchor duo that only Keleri can rival, and they are also the league's best defensive team.
What's going badly: They also had quite a difficult May, dropping consecutive series to Amnanache, Westline, Kepmem, and the Galaxy, but to finish out the first half of the season they had four relegation contenders in a row, so they're feeling good. The weakest unit of the team by far has been the bullpen, but Meka doesn't really have the resources for too many upgrades in that department.

BK Kepmem
52-43 (7th)
What's going well: This is Team Track Meet, having scored the most runs in the EL but allowed the fourth-most, so let's talk about the offense here. The trio of Ayekrea, Koshynae and Pishot is probably the league's best overall trio of position players, all elite hitters and great defenders covering 3B and the outfield corners. They've also gotten nice contributions from 2B Oshor Ramukosho and 1B/OF Lesayo Kino.
What's going badly: With how good the team is on defense, the pitching staff should be pitching to contact and trying to keep the ball out of the ballpark & avoid walking hitters. Unfortunately, they're not avoiding either of those things too well. Kepmem also has a big team-wide platoon split - they have the league's 2nd-best record against lefty starters but are a .500 team against righties. Rosana Pishot is the only left-handed hitter on the entire team!

Kupore BC
53-42 (6th)
What's going well: Not as much as I originally thought. Kupore actually currently has a negative run differential, yet they find themselves near the top of the table (and even nearer before a June swoon). But, when a team outperforms their Pythag, it isn't always luck. It can indicate that the back end of the bullpen is really good, and that's true in Kupore's case with Sosuo Lotechosa, Letsa Sofiulo and the surprise pitcher Hifishu Apuliye, who's made just 26 appearances but has allowed a grand total of one run, for an ERA of 0.39.
What's going badly: So far, the team goes as 2B Koraralu Fatsi goes, and he's been out injured since the end of May. Kupore is 6-13 in June, already a few more losses than they had in March, April, or May, despite having six games left in the month. Teshese Enkasu has filled in lately, and shown himself to not really be an EL-caliber player yet after coming up from tier 6.

Semyof BC
53-42 (5th)
What's going well: After being middle-of-the-road most of the season's first half, Semyof won their first 14 games of June to surge into contention. Chasolo Latemohi is one of the league's top starters so far, and the whole pitching staff has been pretty good, though the team's WAR leader is SS Sashe Liposeli, who leads the club in homers, RBI, and is the only regular batting above .300, while being an above-average shortstop.
What's going badly: It's time to move on from LF Ekufa Yakom. The team has already pushed one aging corner outfielder out of the lineup (well-aged in the case of now-43-year-old Ilye Lilo), and Yakom is not getting it done. The solution is clear: either incumbent 1B Kysha Temyl or pinch-hitting ace Keneche Kimele are capable of playing the outfield.

Pasataki Galaxy
53-42 (4th)
What's going well: SP Pecho Tsytemoi is on pace for a career-best season in his first year down south, and has surpassed Aro Ipo as the team's de facto ace. Ipo and the rest of the pitching staff haven't been slouches either - both the rotation and bullpen are in the top 5 in ERA for their position groups. CF Jaropatso Kesia has been a productive player for all four of the years he's been here, but this is looking like the best of them.
What's going badly: It's been a while since we've seen a Pasataki team that struggled to score runs, but they sit right in the middle of the run-scoring pack right now. I think it might just be that the team is another year older, with Kesia the only regular under the age of 25 (that's old in Lokasi terms, development budgets are pretty low).

National BC
55-40 (3rd)
What's going well: Another team that got off to quite a slow start, the defending champions turned it on in mid-May and have won 24 of their last 35 games. The lineup has been quite strong overall, with Solo Sipet on the MVP shortlist and Pumona Kakosuta not that far behind him in the stats tables. The pitching staff has at least been healthier than it was last year...
What's going badly: ...but it hasn't done them much good. They are without Santa Ketitu and Wicharu Chishatopi for the season, and the guys that are here are struggling compared to last year. 2023 savior Kiro Ponarf has been good, but not as good as he was last year, 2020 Pitcher of the Year Lohy Awia returned from injury but struggled so much that he's moved to the bullpen, and they're now relying on guys like Tashi Watafo to be heroes when they're not really cut out for it. Luckily, the offense, defense, and bullpen are bailing them out.

Mighty Oaks BC
58-37 (2nd)
What's going well: The in-game preseason prediction (8th place, just above .500) was always going to be wrong; the Oaks have had the league's best overall pitching staff and strong fundamentals on defense and on the basepaths. Netomue Kilutsa's return from a torn ACL in mid-March was a big boost. Mostly, the players who have always been good have continued to be good. Having not simmed past this date yet, I would predict the Oaks to reclaim their throne in the second half.
What's going badly: Tsisa Onetatsa has been demoted from the closer's role, with an ERA in the mid-5s as of his last save opportunity on June 9th. He has pulled off a run of seven straight scoreless outings since, though, including a couple of tries as an opener. I'm grasping for straws, things are going pretty well.

Westline BC
59-36 (1st)
What's going well: This is the first point in the season at which Westline has been in first place, but they've been pretty consistent, shaking off a rough March that included getting swept by the Galaxy to open the season. Most notably, Westline has been very healthy this season, having used only six starting pitchers and with their Opening Day lineup still fully in use. If I have to pick a breakout star, it is surprising that the team's WAR leader is 2B Nukacholo Riseki - he would have been my 5th or 6th guess.
What's going badly: the underlying numbers are not as good as the record indicates. Westline was supposed to be elite at every aspect - going back to the preseason predictions, OOTP believed they would be 16 games better than the field. Instead, they've just been pretty good at everything. I will single out center fielder Saryesi Sifoku, who is the only regular on a negative WAR total. If he pulls it together, that'll help the rest of the lineup really sing like it's supposed to.


Alright, onto the second half. Here are the schedule matchups for the next three series, getting us back on to the end of a week. Lots of interesting matchups in round 20, but I'm sure interesting things will happen in rounds 21 and 22 as well:

Round 20:
Keleri vs. Semyof
Amnanache vs. Cheshek
Pasataki Galaxy vs. National
Mithazni vs. Akashemo United
BK Kepmem vs. Kupore
Nokir vs. Tsapna
Sitache vs. Shunna Eagles
Shunna Municipal vs. Hokrof
Westline vs. Lutrul
Meka vs. Mighty Oaks

Round 21:
Cheshek vs. Sitache
National vs. Nokir
Tsapna vs. Amnanache
Hokrof vs. Keleri
Shunna Eagles vs. Mithazni
Lutrul vs. Shunna Municipal
Akashemo United vs. Westline
Kupore vs. Pasataki Galaxy
Mighty Oaks vs. BK Kepmem
Semyof vs. Meka

Round 22:
Tsapna vs. Meka
Hokrof vs. Amnanache
Semyof vs. Nokir
Cheshek vs. Keleri
National vs. BK Kepmem
Akashemo United vs. Pasataki Galaxy
Kupore vs. Shunna Municipal
Shunna Eagles vs. Westline
Mighty Oaks vs. Sitache
Lutrul vs. Mithazni

[Ruwisc]

Week 10-11: June 24-July 10, 2024

Round 20

.....Keleri 1-4 Semyof - 1-4, 1-2, 6-12, 2-5, 7-5
..Amnanache 3-2 Cheshek - 5-4(10), 0-3, 6-4, 1-2, 2-1
...Pasataki 3-2 National - 9-3, 4-3, 8-4, 4-6, 0-2
...Mithazni 3-2 Akashemo - 3-4(10), 4-3, 9-10, 8-6, 5-3(11)
..BK Kepmem 3-2 Kupore - 6-1, 8-2, 7-2, 5-7, 0-3
......Nokir 4-1 Tsapna - 4-1, 4-1, 2-6, 7-5, 9-3
....Sitache 2-3 Sh.Eagles - 1-3, 9-11, 3-5, 6-1, 13-8
.......Muni 2-3 Hokrof - 6-11, 8-5, 2-6, 7-1, 1-4
...Westline 4-1 Lutrul - 3-2, 8-3, 6-1, 1-2(10), 7-4
.......Meka 1-4 Mighty Oaks - 1-2(11), 3-5, 3-5, 9-12(10), 9-8


BK Kepmem 7, Kupore 2: Terrible news from the eastern seaboard today, where Kupore 3B Misote Teshelo has suffered a serious knee injury, a torn PCL, which ends his season. Teshelo has not played a full season since 2020. He missed about half of 2021 with a torn quad, nearly all of the 2022 season by breaking his elbow in the second game of the season, and came back just in time to suffer a broken kneecap in October 2022 that eventually ruled him out until September of last year. Having been at Kupore since 2015, he will now be a free agent, and I'd be a little surprised if they brought him back. 2024 was not quite a return to form for Teshelo (he was an MVP candidate in 2020), but any production was good to see and he had been an above-average hitter for a team that really needs some.

Kupore 7, BK Kepmem 5: Kupore CF Owimero Fefen parks 3 long balls in this win over Kepmem. Fefen, a first-year EL player after toiling in the lower levels until age 25, hasn't been that good, but he'll always have this. These were just his 10th, 11th and 12th homers of the season - Kupore's not a great power-hitting team overall.

July 1: Amnanache announces a two-year contract extension for reliever Fapasile Opopa, for a total of around $9.6 million. Opopa signed a one-year deal in the offseason after missing most of the 2023 season but still collecting a ring from National. Amnanache doesn't really have a settled "closer", but Opopa has generally pitched well enough to be worth $4 million and has picked up 9 saves when the matchups dictated it.

Round 21

....Cheshek 3-2 Sitache - 2-6, 12-3, 6-2(10), 7-4, 6-14
...National 5-0 Nokir - 10-2, 9-6(11), 8-4, 8-7, 5-2
.....Tsapna 2-3 Amnanache - 7-9, 7-6, 2-7, 3-7, 5-4
.....Hokrof 4-1 Keleri - 3-0, 3-0(10), 10-2, 3-1, 2-4
..Sh.Eagles 1-4 Mithazni - 8-3, 7-8, 2-4, 4-5, 6-7
.....Lutrul 4-1 Muni - 8-2, 11-3, 5-6, 12-2, 6-5
...Akashemo 1-4 Westline - 1-2, 5-6, 1-8, 4-1, 1-5
.....Kupore 2-3 Pasataki - 3-2, 4-3, 5-6(12), 0-11, 7-8(12)
Mighty Oaks 0-5 BK Kepmem - 1-7, 2-3, 3-6, 6-12, 2-3
.....Semyof 1-4 Meka - 3-8, 3-2, 1-5, 6-7, 1-11


Two big surprise results in round 21. It's rare to see Mighty Oaks swept at all - I'm not sure when that would have happened last - and they were here at Kepmem. But the real shock is seeing last-place Hokrof, who entered with a road record of 13-37, pulling together 4 of 5 victories by completely shutting down Keleri and only allowing 7 runs across the whole series.

BK Kepmem 7, Mighty Oaks 1: The Oaks' first loss in the sweep was also marked by the injury to 3B Netomue Kilutsa, a torn ACL that ends his season. His second torn ACL in the past two seasons, enough that you have to wonder if he's going to be able to continue to play after this. Like Misote Teshelo, he will also be a free agent at season's end, but Kilutsa won't be ready to return until around June of 2025 at the earliest.

BK Kepmem 3, Mighty Oaks 2 (the first one): Not all sunshine and rainbows down in Kiwa Punem this week - in this win, star LF Faruo Ayekrea left with a groin strain that will keep him out until at least late August. This probably takes him out of MVP consideration, which is a shame.

Round 22

.....Tsapna 4-1 Meka - 1-6, 10-6, 2-0(10), 5-0, 1-0
.....Hokrof 3-2 Amnanache - 11-6, 1-5, 5-3, 5-3, 1-9
.....Semyof 2-3 Nokir - 0-1(10), 5-3, 3-2, 1-2, 3-9
....Cheshek 2-3 Keleri - 7-4(11), 4-11, 0-3, 4-9, 9-5(10)
...National 3-2 BK Kepmem - 7-2(12), 0-1, 7-1, 5-3, 5-6
...Akashemo 1-4 Pasataki - 3-4(10), 1-7, 4-0, 1-2, 3-7
.....Kupore 2-3 Muni - 5-6, 5-13, 6-4(10), 2-6, 3-1
..Sh.Eagles 1-4 Westline - 1-8, 5-4, 3-16, 1-5, 7-8
Mighty Oaks 5-0 Sitache - 4-3(10), 5-3, 6-5, 12-5, 8-0
.....Lutrul 4-1 Mithazni - 5-0, 7-15, 5-4, 7-3, 4-2


National 7, BK Kepmem 2: This didn't generate a news story for some reason, but Kepmem's Teshepo Tefasa left this game with a back issue. Tefasa was last year's league leader in wins with 21, and as you'll see, just a few days before this was named June's Pitcher of the Month. He will probably miss all of July, but the rest of his season is not in jeopardy.

Mithazni 15, Lutrul 7: A big part of Mithazni's blowout in this game came from their star 2B Oma Feputso, who was 4-4 with three home runs, 7 RBI, and a walk to boot. Mithazni hit 9 extra-base hits in total, and was very efficient as a team, only leaving two runners on base.

Akashemo United 4, Pasataki Galaxy 0: Akashemo ace Tsarase Roshoshe completely shut down the Galaxy tonight on a 3-hitter, striking out 11 in the process. He's moved up to 2nd in the league in strikeouts, and is on pace for more than he had in 2022 (when he finished 3rd in the league).

Westline 16, Shunna Eagles 3: After I maligned him during the first-half recap, Westline CF Saryesi Sifoku is the first player to record 6 hits in a single game this season, going 6-6 with a double, two home runs, 3 runs scored and 5 RBI in total. Westline is a good offensive team, but today was something else, racking up 22 hits in total despite star 1B Peku Karwo's 0-4 day (though he did walk twice).

Standings..........W..L
-- ....Westline.. 71 39
-- .Mighty Oaks.. 67 43
-- ....National.. 65 45
-- ....P.Galaxy.. 63 47
+2 ......Kepmem.. 62 48
+3 ......Lutrul.. 60 50
-2 ......Semyof.. 60 50
-2 ......Kupore.. 59 51
-1 ........Meka.. 57 53
+2 ...Amnanache.. 57 53
-- .......Nokir.. 57 53
-2 ......Keleri.. 56 54
+1 ......Tsapna.. 54 56
-1 ........Muni.. 54 56
-- ...Sh.Eagles.. 48 62
-- Akashemo Utd.. 47 63
-- .....Cheshek.. 45 64
-----------------------------
+1 ....Mithazni.. 41 68
-1 .....Sitache.. 41 69
-- ......Hokrof.. 35 75


That's a big surge for Westline, 12-3 to widen their lead from one game to four. The two big shock series results in round 21 both had an effect on the end-of-week standings, with Kepmem's sweep of Mighty Oaks allowing for that gap to widen, and moving Kepmem into the top 5, while Keleri drops to a nearly-unprecedented 12th. (They've never finished that low... ever.)

We also see the gap between 17th and 18th widen from 1 1/2 games to 4, with Cheshek going a not-great-but-better-than-they've-been 7-8 over this period. Mithazni and Hokrof were above .500 for the period, with Hokrof winning three straight series for the first time this season (they only won 4 of their 19 series in the first half).

Each team's first six games of this period took place in June, with the final 9 in July. Here are the June awards:

Batter of the Month: Sitache 1B Fomo Tirma - .448, 2 HR, 20 RBI, 19 R. The OOTP news desk hilariously refers to this as a "breakout month". He retook the batting race lead from Topeshe Tsaruo this week. If he's unable to lead Sitache to safety, he would pretty clearly be the prize free agent.

Pitcher of the Month: BK Kepmem SP Teshepo Tefasa - 4-0, 1.25 ERA, 36 IP, 30 K in five starts. Last year's big breakout pitcher kept it going in June, though he'll miss most of July with the aforementioned injury.

Rookie of the Month: Shunna Eagles OF Topeshe Tsaruo - .376, 3 HR, 20 RBI, 17 R. This is his third straight Rookie of the Month award, after Amnanache's Marte Choap won in March.

Next week, the highlight of the early week is a pair of traditional powers that are struggling mightily, as Keleri visits Tsapna. Then, a run-back of one of the rounds from just a few weeks ago. Full schedule:

Round 23:
BK Kepmem vs. Shunna Eagles
Shunna Municipal vs. Cheshek
Westline vs. Kupore
Mithazni vs. Mighty Oaks
Nokir vs. Akashemo United
Sitache vs. Semyof
Amnanache vs. National
Pasataki Galaxy vs. Hokrof
Keleri vs. Tsapna
Meka vs. Lutrul

Round 24:
Sitache vs. National
BK Kepmem vs. Akashemo United
Meka vs. Cheshek
Amnanache vs. Lutrul
Shunna Municipal vs. Tsapna
Pasataki Galaxy vs. Shunna Eagles
Nokir vs. Mighty Oaks
Mithazni vs. Semyof
Westline vs. Hokrof
Keleri vs. Kupore

[Ruwisc]

Week 12: July 11-22, 2024

Round 23

..BK Kepmem 2-3 Sh.Eagles - 3-11, 1-7, 9-4, 0-2, 3-1
.......Muni 3-2 Cheshek - 0-2, 7-2, 8-6, 2-4, 15-3
...Westline 4-1 Kupore - 8-5(10), 4-1, 3-5, 6-5, 5-0
...Mithazni 2-3 Mighty Oaks - 3-11, 2-1, 3-7, 4-0, 3-7
......Nokir 2-3 Akashemo - 1-9, 8-7, 3-4, 2-8, 4-2
....Sitache 1-4 Semyof - 3-6, 3-4, 4-5, 3-1, 2-3
..Amnanache 1-4 National - 7-1, 4-5(10), 3-5, 6-8, 1-7
...Pasataki 3-2 Hokrof - 2-4, 3-2, 5-4, 6-5(12), 1-4
.....Keleri 2-3 Tsapna - 1-3, 5-1, 7-6(10), 7-8(10), 0-1
.......Meka 3-2 Lutrul - 5-2, 7-9, 8-4, 3-4, 7-3(10)


Shunna Eagles 11, BK Kepmem 3: Big day for the Eagles' corner infielders - 3B Sawita Pichake and 1B Shonoe Laupi combined for nine hits, six for extra bases including 4 XBH for Pichake (3 doubles and a home run), as well as 5 RBI and runs scored together. Laupi had 5 of the hits, garnering the auto-news story, but Pichake undoubtedly had the better game.

Akashemo United 4, Nokir 3: Akashemo RF Putta Faseltsa came up firing to try to stop Nokir's Saruruso Rishisite from going first-to-third, and it results in a season-ending injury to his throwing shoulder. Akashemo loses their leadoff hitter.

July 17: The Pasataki Galaxy announce a 2-year contract extension with catcher Memomo Shiheshasi for a total of $16.2 million. He's... fine, I guess? Roughly a league-average catcher altogether. He's currently in the middle of his worst offensive season of his career, in year 9 of his career and year 5 with the Galaxy, so I suppose you'd better get paid while you can.

Westine 5, Kupore 0: Westline ace and reigning PoY Tula Mitonone was forced to exit his no-hit bid after six innings, after the throw into second from Kupore right fielder Leno Kenora struck a sliding Mitonone on the head. (I'm editorializing, but how else do you get a concussion while legging out a double?) Koraralu Fatsi, only a few days after coming back from his injury, broke up the no-hitter with a 7th-inning double against Rupeuo Sipata, though that was the only hit Kupore would record on the night.

Round 24

....Sitache 2-3 National - 2-4, 8-7, 3-6, 4-2, 4-5(11)
..BK Kepmem 2-3 Akashemo - 8-10, 4-5, 0-2, 11-7, 4-1
.......Meka 3-2 Cheshek - 3-8, 7-2, 13-2, 7-5, 4-7
..Amnanache 1-4 Lutrul - 6-7, 1-7, 1-17, 2-3, 6-5
.......Muni 3-2 Tsapna - 0-9, 5-3, 5-2, 6-7, 6-3
...Pasataki 5-0 Sh.Eagles - 7-1, 7-1, 5-3, 4-3, 5-0
......Nokir 1-4 Mighty Oaks - 5-8, 2-7, 9-4, 1-7, 1-6
...Mithazni 2-3 Semyof - 2-6, 4-3, 1-3, 1-6, 8-6
...Westline 3-2 Hokrof - 5-2, 1-4, 7-3, 2-4, 5-1
.....Keleri 4-1 Kupore - 5-4, 5-3, 1-4, 9-6, 9-5


Akashemo United 2, BK Kepmem 1: In Tsarase Roshoshe's last start, they lost Faseltsa for the year... well now, Roshoshe himself has gone down for the year with a torn UCL, costing him not just the rest of 2024 but likely most of the 2025 season as well. The Akashemo ace is slated to be a free agent at the end of that 2025 season, which is just devastating timing for the fans.

Standings..........W..L
-- ....Westline.. 78 42
-- .Mighty Oaks.. 74 46
-- ....National.. 72 48
-- ....P.Galaxy.. 71 49
+2 ......Semyof.. 67 53
-- ......Lutrul.. 66 54
-2 ......Kepmem.. 66 54
+1 ........Meka.. 63 57
+3 ......Keleri.. 62 58
-2 ......Kupore.. 61 59
+3 ........Muni.. 60 60
-1 .......Nokir.. 60 60
-- ......Tsapna.. 59 61
-4 ...Amnanache.. 59 61
+1 Akashemo Utd.. 53 67
-1 ...Sh.Eagles.. 51 69
-- .....Cheshek.. 49 70
-----------------------------
-- ....Mithazni.. 45 74
-- .....Sitache.. 44 76
-- ......Hokrof.. 39 81


Status quo at the ends of the standings this week, with the top 5 all going either 8-2 or 7-3, and the bottom 5 either going 4-6 or 3-7, and Westline's lead atop the table standing pat at exactly 4 games. A bit more jostling in the middle, with Kupore and Amnanache both having a pretty bad time out there. (We can excuse Kupore for dropping 4 of 5 to both Westline and Keleri, even though both series were at home.)

In week 13, I'll be watching both Oaks series as they visit a pair of struggling legacy rivals. Mighty Oaks/Keleri is always a draw, with the two cities being relatively close - it's the Liverpool/Manchester United of Lokasi baseball. It's also a big week for Semyof, who have a chance to stake a claim at a top-4 spot by facing the two teams right in front of them.

Round 25:
Cheshek vs. Westline
Tsapna vs. Sitache
Lutrul vs. BK Kepmem
Kupore vs. Amnanache
Shunna Eagles vs. Nokir
Mighty Oaks vs. Keleri
Hokrof vs. Meka
National vs. Mithazni
Semyof vs. Pasataki Galaxy
Akashemo United vs. Shunna Municipal

Round 26:
Keleri vs. Meka
Shunna Eagles vs. Cheshek
Mighty Oaks vs. Tsapna
BK Kepmem vs. Sitache
Mithazni vs. Nokir
National vs. Semyof
Hokrof vs. Akashemo United
Westline vs. Amnanache
Pasataki Galaxy vs. Shunna Municipal
Lutrul vs. Kupore

[Ruwisc]

Week 13: July 23-August 3, 2024

Round 25

....Cheshek 3-2 Westline - 5-7, 4-2, 7-3, 12-6, 0-8
.....Tsapna 3-2 Sitache - 8-7(10), 9-12, 2-3, 5-3, 3-2
.....Lutrul 4-1 BK Kepmem - 7-1, 4-1, 7-8(10), 3-2, 6-5
.....Kupore 0-5 Amnanache - 2-7, 3-8, 4-7, 6-8, 6-7(10)
..Sh.Eagles 2-3 Nokir - 5-6(10), 6-4, 4-2, 9-13, 3-11
Mighty Oaks 0-5 Keleri - 3-6, 1-3, 1-4, 4-5, 4-5(13)
.....Hokrof 1-4 Meka - 0-2, 3-4, 6-5, 2-10, 4-10
...National 3-2 Mithazni - 4-1, 6-7(11), 11-7, 8-5, 3-5
.....Semyof 2-3 Pasataki - 2-5, 2-4, 4-2, 2-7, 8-5
...Akashemo 1-4 Muni - 8-9, 3-4(10), 4-0, 2-4, 4-9


A couple of quite surprising series results here in round 25. Cheshek has been in a season-long funk, but they're pulling out of it at the right time, taking their series against the current leaders in one of many Ransu-Ransu rivalries. Neither is each other's biggest rival (Cheshek would say Amnanache, and Westliners would probably say Semyof) but there's always that extra little bit of spice when two teams from the city play one another.

But the headliner is a big sweep in what is certainly the league's biggest rivalry between teams from different cities, Keleri taking all five from Mighty Oaks. Hefem and Aroketsil are about 200 miles apart, so not too close, but they are the two biggest cities in that general part of the country, and Keleri & Mighty Oaks themselves are probably the league's two biggest brands. The sweep was punctuated by a 13-inning thriller, the longest game in the league this season. Both teams made a number of mistakes, but the one people remember will probably be Oaks 2B Niresilo Fetiloa whiffing on a squeeze bunt attempt, allowing Tylu Tsefufayalo to be easily tagged out in the top of the 13th - Keleri catcher Seo Sekao delivered the winning RBI single in the bottom half of the inning.

National 11, Mithazni 7: National will be without 2B Hamafme Nokolo for the remainder of the season due to an anachronistic collision at second base (why is this still in the game?) with Mithazni SS Kes Merefife. Combined with an earlier injury, Nokolo will play just 45 games in his first EL season after coming up from the Second League's Ransu Shockers.

Westline 8, Cheshek 0: Westline's speedy outfielder Chatiri Shosotsoke will miss about a month and a half with a bout of plantar fasciitis. It's a concerning injury for someone so young (18) and for whom speed is such a big part of his game, but he should be back in mid-September for the title stretch.

Round 26

.....Keleri 3-2 Meka - 3-4, 8-6, 0-6, 3-2, 8-6
..Sh.Eagles 2-3 Cheshek - 4-2, 2-5, 1-4, 9-1, 2-6
Mighty Oaks 3-2 Tsapna - 6-2(10), 2-3(10), 3-1, 2-8, 9-2
..BK Kepmem 3-2 Sitache - 4-8, 6-2, 0-5, 5-4(10), 5-4(11)
...Mithazni 2-3 Nokir - 5-7, 7-4, 3-10, 14-3, 6-7
...National 3-2 Semyof - 5-3, 0-8, 1-7, 5-1, 6-3(10)
.....Hokrof 3-2 Akashemo - 6-4, 3-2, 4-9, 4-5, 11-5
...Westline 2-3 Amnanache - 9-8, 8-3, 1-2(10), 2-5, 8-9(12)
...Pasataki 4-1 Muni - 6-1, 3-4, 8-3, 4-3, 4-0
.....Lutrul 4-1 Kupore - 8-2, 7-2, 3-2, 2-4, 6-2


Not much to highlight in round 26 - I didn't see any individual performances worth spotlighting. Westline sees their lead shrink back to 4 games - it had grown a bit in the early week, despite their series loss, due to the Oaks getting swept.

Standings..........W..L
-- ....Westline.. 82 48
+2 ....P.Galaxy.. 78 52
-- ....National.. 78 52
-2 .Mighty Oaks.. 77 53
+1 ......Lutrul.. 74 56
-1 ......Semyof.. 71 59
-- ......Kepmem.. 70 60
+1 ......Keleri.. 70 60
-1 ........Meka.. 69 61
+4 ...Amnanache.. 67 63
+1 .......Nokir.. 66 64
-1 ........Muni.. 65 65
-- ......Tsapna.. 64 66
-4 ......Kupore.. 62 68
-- Akashemo Utd.. 56 74
+1 .....Cheshek.. 55 74
-1 ...Sh.Eagles.. 55 75
-----------------------------
-- ....Mithazni.. 49 80
-- .....Sitache.. 48 82
-- ......Hokrof.. 43 87


While Westline still have the 4-game lead atop the standings that they did last week, it feels a bit sticky having gone 4-6. The Oaks had the league's second-worst record on the week at 3-7, hence their drop to fourth place.

The disaster team of the week, as it has been for a bit, is Kupore at 1-9. They had a 5-21 record in the month of July, endured (coinciding) stretches of 10 straight losses and losing 16 of 18, and have fallen closer to the relegation pack than the title pack. It's a good thing they banked all those early wins in March, April and May. At the end of May, they were even with Westline in the table, in second place & two games behind Mighty Oaks. Now... well, they probably have too many wins to be relegated, but who knows.

July awards:

Batter of the Month: Lutrul SS Tilutsu Hofohe - .330, 11 HR, 34 RBI, 25 R, 14 BB, .417 OBP. Hofohe, on his third EL team at 23, hasn't won this award before - great for him. This is his first year at Lutrul following two years with Muni, and he seems poised to set new career highs in a few categories, including homers (30, to a career high of 37).

Pitcher of the Month: Mithazni CL Ketsu Sasewiraka - 0.71 ERA, 3-0, 0.75 BAA, 6 saves, 23 K in 12.2 IP. Life is hard when you're a closer for a bottom-of-the-table team, but Sasewiraka has been making it work lately. Mithazni was 9-1 when he pitched, and he allowed just a single run the entire month (and still got the save in that game).

Rookie of the Month: Meka SP Fekiu Wefo - 3-0, 1.69 ERA, 35 K, 32 IP, .183 BAA in five starts. Wefo breaks a 3-month streak for Topeshe Tsaruo winning this award. Wefo has been absolutely stellar all year, but has now gotten his ERA down to a league-second-best 2.49 & has become the de facto ace of the Meka staff.

Next week, the two teams who made the biggest leaps in the standings in week 13 will face off as Amnanache travel south to face the Galaxy. Round 28 isn't that much of a draw overall, but those can often produce the most interesting results as well.

Round 27:
Shunna Municipal vs. Mighty Oaks
Kupore vs. Hokrof
Akashemo United vs. Shunna Eagles
Semyof vs. Westline
Nokir vs. BK Kepmem
Sitache vs. Keleri
Cheshek vs. Lutrul
Meka vs. Mithazni
Tsapna vs. National
Amnanache vs. Pasataki Galaxy

Round 28:
BK Kepmem vs. Shunna Municipal
Mighty Oaks vs. Shunna Eagles
Keleri vs. Lutrul
Mithazni vs. Pasataki Galaxy
National vs. Hokrof
Sitache vs. Akashemo United
Nokir vs. Kupore
Semyof vs. Amnanache
Meka vs. Westline
Tsapna vs. Cheshek