ISLANDIAN PRO ALLIANCE (RUTHLANDIA and TYCOBBIA BASEBALL UNIONS)

[Eugene Church]

Bailey Norcross and his Middlefield Roosters (63-91) had another terrible year and came in next-to-last, 35 games behind first-place Colfax... the Roosters haven't had a good season since winning four straight RU West pennants from 2023 to 2026... in all, the Roosters have been in the playoffs on 9 occasions and won a Pro Cup in 2005... Middlefield doesn't do anything very well... the most dependable arms are Tyrus Cobb (13-14) and Judson Davis (12-19)... 1B Rusty Reese (.296) is the only dependable hitter.

[Eugene Church]

When you have an awful offense and so-so pitching, nothing good ever comes out of it... the defending division flag bearer, the Sligo Rovers (61-93), have now fallen on bad times after winning the RU West 5 times in the last 12 years and making the first division 13 times in 14 seasons... the Rovers even racked up the Pro Cup in 2021... Earl Perkins (11-13) and Lou Page (12-15) are quality pitchers that get little run support... manager Eddie Keys has got a lot of work to do to right the ship... you know you have problems when the club leader 1B Maury Rice hits only .234 with 16 homers and 53 RBIs... the Rovers are coming off some fine seasons... they won the division in 3 of the last 6 campaigns.

[Eugene Church]

THE ISLANDIAN TIMES
Wednesday, September 22, 2032

2032 Tycobbian North Final Recap

Frogs Outlast Zorros For TU North Crown
The Tycobbian North had six clubs with winning records and might have been the strongest division in the IPA... all of them were battling for the lead at the halfway point, separated by only 6 games... However in the second half of the season, the champion Fairfax Frogs left everybody in their wake... only defending champ Luxora managed to stay fairly close as the Zorros lost out by 6 games... North Hills came in third, 11 games out... with White River, Oxford and Mahaska trailing by 13 games and tying for the fourth spot... Mahaska had a slight 2-game margin over Fairfax at the All-Star break, but faltered in the second half.

Manager Dane Wesner thinks this edition of the Fairfax Frogs (95-59) are the best in the team's history and have their best chance of finally winning the long-sought after IPA Pro Cup... the Frogs have only gotten into second round twice... on four occasions they were eliminated in the first round... the Frogs topped the Tycobbian Union with 95 victories, the most in the club's history.

Fairfax has solid hitting and fairly good pitching, especially its starters... Wesner has four fine pitchers in All-Star Kenny Nikas (25-9), who posted the most wins in the TU... Manny Hunsinger (18-13), Joey Santini (17-6) and Dudley Dickens (13-9) were reliable, too... closer Kevin Meeks (8-6/13 saves) gives them a dependable man in the bullpen... SS John Velasco (.294), All-Star LF Max Leibowitz (.278) and All-Star C Brian Davis (.289) were the primary contributors at the plate... the Frogs have good offense and good power... they are fine defenders as well with a .976 FA... Fairfax is a well-balanced club and could go deep in the Pro Cup playoffs.

[Eugene Church]

Luxora has won 9 pennants in its history and appeared 11 times in the postseason, but they have never won a Pro Cup... After winning 96 games and the pennant last season, manager Lacey Tompkins had great expectations for this year, but the Luxora Zorros (89-65) just couldn't keep up with the Fairfax Frogs... the Z's matched up well with the Frogs except in fielding (.967 FA)... Luxora's top twirlers were Kent Halloran (18-10), Benny DeVito (18-16) and Fabio Medeiros (16-15).... offensively All-Star 1B Gerry Hathaway carried the club with 40 homers, 108 RBIs and a .313 BA... and LF Carl Denton also help out with 26 homers, 76 RBIs, while batting .261.

[Eugene Church]

The third-place North Hills Hawks (84-70) had their best season since winning the TU North in 2016... the Hawks have been mostly a second-division club since then... North Hills has only been in the postseason twice and has never won the Pro Cup trophy... skipper Todd Simons energized them this year and they are trending up in the standings, but they still finished 11 games behind in the race... veterans Sam Tate (21-13) and David Michael (20-12) were the prime starters with help from a fine rookie Nelson Hopper (12-13), who compiled a 2.81 ERA... overall the Hawks were just a little bit above average... top bats were CF Clyde Chalmers (.301) and LF Ronnie Guillaume (.303).

[Eugene Church]

After three years in the division basement, White River Rascals (82-72) manager Mick Cronyn made some good progress with a fourth-place finish, tied with Oxford and Mahaska, 13 games off the pace... the Rascals waited almost 20 years before making the postseason in 2021... overall they have captured 4 pennants, the last one in 2027, but have never won the Pro Cup... White River lost twice in the TU title game to Pro Cup champ Tuckanarra in 2023 and 2024.

White River has good pitching, led by ace Paul Sardini (10-3) and Gregg Moore (19-9)... Sardini missed half the season with an injury, but did make the All-Star team... Sardini had a 1.73 ERA, but didn't have enough innings to qualify for the ERA title... All-Star closer Ike Phelps (6-3) was outstanding in the bullpen with 22 saves and a 1.35 ERA in 62 games... rookie 1B Davey Sloan did well with 31 homers and 79 RBIs, but hit just .262... another rookie CF Clive Kenyon showed promise with 17 homers, 64 RBIs and a .303 BA in 102 games... Cronyn needs improved hitting... not much punch or average in the Rascals lineup.

[Eugene Church]

The Oxford Red Caps (82-72) made strides in the right direction under manager Cameron Kamara and wound up in a fourth-place tie... the Red Caps haven't participated in the Pro Cup playoffs since winning it all in 2007... Oxford made the postseason five of its first six seasons, but its been sparse since... Kamara had two quality pitchers in Mario Lopez (19-10/2.52) and Johnny Petrie (9-6/2.84)... Oxford didn't hit much for average, but could go deep... 1B Kerry Sterling had 33 homers, 82 RBIs and a .295 BA to top the team... also helping out were CF Dalton Ward with 24 roundtrippers, 2B Francisco De La Hoya with 21 and LF Dennis Hartwig with 19.

[Eugene Church]

The Mahaska Haymakers (82-72) trailed first-place Fairfax by 13 games and tied for fourth with White River and Oxford... Rusty Tanussa is the only manager in the Haymakers history... he has only 3 pennants and 4 playoff appearances in 31 seasons with no Pro Cups in the Mahaska trophy case... the Haymakers had a good season by being 10 games over .500... Tanussa's team excelled on the mound with a superb 2.83 ERA, which was second to San Alejo's IPA best at 2.73... Mark Pennington (19-10), James Allington (17-15) and Carl Dreux (10-10) all chalked up ERAs under 3.00... but the Haymakers were at the bottom of the league in scoring... SS Buddy Myers (.312), CF Pasha Yablonski (.265), and LF Johnny Yevtushenko (.305) and RF Travis Tuttle (.300) provided most of Mahaska's offense.

[Eugene Church]

It's all been downhill for the Blue Lake Blue Sox (76-78) since the Pro Cup title just two years ago... last year Rick Hilliard's club came in third... this year the Blue Sox fell to seventh place, 19 games behind... part of the problem was the loss of pitcher Billy Trakus (8-6), who was lost in June for the season and will likely miss all of next year with a torn tendon... overall the team ERA rose up from 2.82 to 3.28 this season... the starting rotation was pretty steady, but the bullpen took a bad hit with a 3.77 ERA (21st) and the batters couldn't get runs in... Hilliard's best batters were 3B Matt Thompson (.321) with 88 RBIs, 76 runs and 11 HRs... SS Josh Perkins (.295), LF Boom-Boom Baker (.260) and All-Star CF Chris Halley, who batted .313 the first half of the season, then struggled in the second half and ended up at .278... rookie RF Norm Davidson blossomed a .289 BA with 15 homers and 68 RBIs.

[Eugene Church]

The Hartsdale Hellcats (61-93) garnered their sixth TU North division flag in 2029, but have taken a nosedive the past few seasons, winding up in last place this year, 34 games behind Fairfax... after 32 years in the IPA the Hellcats are still looking for their first IPA Pro Cup crown... skipper Kendry Moulton's club didn't far well... Lou Chylak (16-14/2.59) was the only standout pitcher... and All-Star 1B Johnny Scott was the only reliable threat with a .295 BA, 29 homers, 101 RBIs and 91 runs.

[Eugene Church]

THE ISLANDIAN TIMES
Wednesday, September 22, 2032

2032 Tycobbian South Final Recap

SA Monties Finally Win Again In TU South
It's been a long, long wait, but the San Alejo Montaneros have finally won the pennant in the Tycobbian South... San Alejo won the division flag its first two seasons in the IPA, but then went almost three decades before winning again... the Monties outdid the Southport Sun Sox by 7 games, Arroyo Grande by 8 and Colchester by 16 games... four teams were in the race until mid-season... Arroyo Grande had a game lead over San Alejo, 3 better than Colchester and 6 in front ot Southport... Both the Montaneros and Sun Sox pulled ahead of the Suns with great runs in August... last year's division winner Ginza was never a factor this year and wound up in sixth place and trailed by 20 games... the Ninjas were already 10 games behind at the halfway mark in the season.

Manager Alberto Herrera got superlative pitching from his mound corps... San Alejo (92-62) led the entire IPA with a sparkling 2.73 team ERA... Crystal Lake set the league record in 2022 with a 2.66 ERA... how good were the Montaneros?... the worst ERA on the staff was closer Johnny Oates (5-4/20 saves) with a 3.09 ERA... All-Star Johnny Brown (14-8) topped the club with a 2.36 ERA, followed by Ollie Olivares (19-13) with 2.60, Mario Aragon (12-7) at 2.77, Herb Stewart (18-14) with 2.90 and Clete Lawson (18-12) at 2.94.

Herrera also had good run production with a .260 team BA, ranking 9th in runs and 10th in homers... 2B Dwight Dickey topped the San Alejo with a .320 BA... rookie CF Adrian Otero (.255) was the power guy with 25 homers and 86 RBIs... the Montaneros could be better on defense (.969 FA).

In the Tycobbian Union playoffs there will be two perennials and two upstarts... Tuckanarra and Rolling Hills have 20 postseason appearances and 4 Pro Cups between them, while Fairfax and San Alejo have combined for only 8 playoff appearances and zero Pro Cups... most analysts are forecasting a wide open battle for the TU title.

[Eugene Church]

The runner-up Southport Sun Sox (85-69) played a lackluster first half and fell too far behind San Alejo at mid-year, finally finishing up 7 games back... however they finished with a flourish and were playing very well in the latter part of the season, going toe-to-toe with the champion Montaneros... longtime skipper Charley Oscar kept the Sun Sox in the first division for the eighth straight year... Southport has made the playoffs only 3 times, but two of them were in recent seasons, 2027 and 2028... Oscar's top hurlers are starters Wiley Wheeler (19-12), Don Pascioni (20-12) and Bob Bondy (13-9), along with closer Ronnie Galus (3-4/17 saves)... Wheeler made the All-Star squad for the first time in his 11-year career... superstar and future IPA HOF-er and All-Star RF Lorne Evans topped the club with a .324 BA, 26 HRs, 100 runs and 74 RBIs... C Davy Reichert batted .277 with 19 home runs, 98 runs and 54 RBIs.

[Eugene Church]

No complaints about the season the Arroyo Grande Suns (84-70) turned in under new manager Buddy Bechtel, who starred in the outfield for the Suns for 14 years (2013-2026)... Cyclone Cobb retired after a string of bad seasons from 2028 to 2031... the Suns came in last in three of the four seasons... this season improved pitching was the primary difference... the Suns' strong point was the home-run ball... they led the IPA with 186 roundtrippers... Jules Capet (20-12), Royce Coleman (11-4) and 36-year-old rookie Rafael Amarante (17-15) headed up a pretty fair staff, considering Capet Stadium is a hitter's paradise... in the bullpen 38-year-old John Nelson (8-4) saved 22 games... 2B Valerio Cortes led the team with 28 homers, followed by 1B Rusty Vizcarra with 24 and RF Gregorio Oliveira with 21... however none of them hit very well for average... they all were around .235 average-wise... the Suns did well with the gloves with a .974 FA.

[Eugene Church]

The Colchester Elites (76-78) had a good run until the All-Star game... they were in third place just 3 games behind leading Arroyo Grande, but fell to the wayside in a second-half slump, eventually coming in fourth in the standings, 16 games behind the leader... manager Patsy Bates' boys hit with good power, ranking fifth in the Tycobbian Union... they could score runs (4th), but had average pitching and were a little below average with a .970 fielding mark... Colchester's big guns were 1B Big Sam Takota with a .308 BA, 30 homers and 109 RBIs... CF Jim Lewellan, who hit 45 roundtrippers to lead the TU and totaled 115 runs and 101 RBIs... and RF Cleve Belton with 21 home runs, 74 RBIs and a .265 BA... on the hill Kevin Nixon (14-6) and Mackie McGinnity (17-13) stood out for the Elites.

[Eugene Church]

The Turon Typhoons (75-79) are the most successful franchise in IPA history with 13 postseason appearances and 4 Pro Cups... but it's been 13 years since the last pennant... most of those seasons the Typhoons swooned in the second division of the TU South... this year manager Alan Hansen brought them in fifth, 17 games out of first place... Turon can score runs, but they can't stop the opposition very well... and they are the worst team in the IPA with a very poor .966 FA... Hansen has a few good batsmen like 3B Michael Page (.311), who hammered 26 HRs and batted in 96 runs... SS Fred Bird (.314), who stole 32 bases and scored 74 runs... and LF Edwin Asher (.290), who stole 25 bases and scored 80 times... rookie Wes Brynnton (14-13) did very well with a 2.92 ERA... other reliable arms were Emile Papajohn (14-13) and vet Victor Stravinsky (16-12).

[Eugene Church]

The Ginza Ninjas (72-82) have taken 6 of the last 10 pennants, but they flopped this year, dipping down to the sixth spot in the TU South standings... Ginza has never won the Pro Cup in its 32-year history... skipper Huroko Uchiyama's club is solid on the mound, lousy at the plate and above average with the gloves (.974 FA)... the Ninjas have capable pitchers in Hollis Pace (16-9/2.41), Gary Mills (11-8/3.01), Karl Zenger (14-14/3.19) and Ryuji Kaneko (12-20/3.24)... but they get very little run support... Ginza's only productive bats are 1B Roger Lanier (.286) with 21 HRs and 81 RBIs and LF Sadaharu Uchiyama (.276) with 11 HRs and 58 RBIs.

[Eugene Church]

You have to go back to 2005 for the only playoff appearance by the Summerland Sunsets (64-90)... and the Sunsets didn't even win the pennant that year, they came in second... however the top two teams in each division qualified at that time... Summerland has never won a divisional championship in its history... manager Will Hackett had to endure another poor season with a seventh-place finish, 28 games back of San Alejo... the Sunsets possess terrible hitting, ranking near the bottom in scoring... they have absolutely no power with only 73 homers, by far the lowest total in the IPA... with only mediocre pitching and average defense (.971 FA)... Freddi Rossi stood out with an impressive 2.72 ERA, but was only 16-18 record-wise... the only bright spots in the batting order were All-Star CF Antonio Vasquez, the club leader with a .315 BA, 37 stolen bases and 74 runs... 1B Mandu Purula hit .290 with 14 homers and 59 RBIs... and 3B Mark Delaney (.273) had 15 HRs. and 65 RBIs.

[Eugene Church]

Manager Flipper Bird led the Cape Coral Hurricanes (62-92) to the TU South pennant in 2030, but the team went into a rapid decline, falling to sixth last year and to the cellar this year... the 'Canes were 30 games off the pace... the pitching is horrendous with a 4.58 ERA, the worst in the IPA... the only somewhat effective pitcher Bird has is Mike Rinaldi with a 13-8 record and a so-so 4.08 ERA... leading the Cape Coral attack is 15-time All-Star C Crash Davis with a .305 average, 19 homers, 81 RBIs and 86 runs... 3B Dayton McCall pace the team with a .321 BA in his third season... McCall had 14 home runs and 68 runs batted in... rookie SS Dutch Wilderboar shows promise with a .305 BA, 63 runs and 44 RBIs... Wilderboar played solid defense, too... freshman LF Chris Noon impressed with a .329 BA and 22 SBs.

[Eugene Church]

THE ISLANDIAN TIMES
Wednesday, September 22, 2032

2032 Tycobbian East Final Recap

Tucks Nip Midway In TU East, Prevail in Playoff
From start to finish the Tycobbian West enjoyed a pretty fair pennant race with six teams in the chase... the Tuckanarra Blue Jays nipped the Midway Wolves 7-3 in a single-game playoff for the division flag... Eddie Darby's grand slam in the ninth was the difference.

The Tucks took charge in the last two months to edge the Wolves by a single game... the Blue Jays came on strong with a 13-6 record in September and Midway slumped to 7-12, costing them the crown... the Wolves went into the final month 5 games ahead of Tuckanarra... the TU East was one of the few close races this year... last year's winner East Point came in third, missing out by 4 and a half games... fourth in the standings were the Ozarka Naturals, who trailed by 5 and a half... South Fork and Hillsboro deadlocked for the fifth spot, just 6 and a half games out.

This was the 7th flag in Tuckanarra's (87-68) history and the 11th postseason appearance... the Blue Jays will be going for their third Pro Cup trophy... they took two in a row back in 2023 and 2024... Carlton "Lefty" Stevens is still running the franchise and would like nothing better than to haul in another Pro Cup... the Tucks boast an impressive mound staff... Matt Stevens (18-10/2.81) and Joel Sheppard (18-15/3.13) won the most games and had help from Philip Marston (13-7/2.06), Glynn Starr (13-8/3.13) and Quinn Starr (11-11/3.07)... Marston was a godsend... he came back in mid-June after missing a year with an injury and posted a super 2.06 ERA, topped only by Gregg Hughes of Hillsboro with a 1.96 ERA, the IPA leader... Stevens doesn't have a heavy-hitting lineup, but they do the job with decent hitters throughout the batting order... the best run producers are 3B Nicky Weill (.294) with 15 homers in 101 games... CF Dusty Rogan (.272) with 24 homers and 74 RBIs... and 1B Lynn Starr (.249) with 11 homers and 62 RBIs... as far as the Pro Cup is concerned, Tuckanarra's experience and quality pitching may take them a long way in the postseason... though defensively the Blue Jays could be better (.970 FA).

[Eugene Church]

The Midway Wolves (86-69) have been just a lackluster club since winning the TU East five years ago... manager Cochise Chandler got startling improvement on the mound this year, going from a 3.84 team ERA to a great 2.90 ERA... the Wolves were sixth the last two seasons and rose up to second this year... they would have won the pennant except for a slump in the final two months... the season especially went sour in September... longtime ace Bobby Dorignac (18-12/2.49) and Cary Snead (17-12/2.77) prospered this year with help from vet Benny McConnell (12-11/2.60), Taima Nodin (10-11/2.90) and Ko Yuma (13-14/2.98)... All-Star Yuma had a great first half with a 10-4 record and a 1.88 ERA, but tailed off in the second half... Midway's offense was only so-so, led by veteran 3B Rusty Graves (.278) with 11 HRs and 74 RBIs and rookie RF Shaman Sakima (.268) with 12 HRs and 53 RBIs... the Wolves were not a good fielding team with a .969 FA.