Nova Anglicana IBS VI Preview
The Lions, an upstart team turned establishment favorite, will bring the same roster as WBC 30 into IBS
VI.
WBC 30, while not a poor performance by any standards, could only have been considered a disappointment for the Lions. After finishing 5-3 in the group stage, squeaking through to the playoffs despite some major struggles (this from the #3 team in the world), they made it to the quarterfinals, which they have reached in all four WBCs in which they have participated. They didn't do it the easy way, winning Ro24 and Ro16 series 2-1 against what should have been overmatched opponents. All that stood in the way of a 3rd consecutive semifinals appearance and a rematch with Super-Llamaland was Western Cuba, a legendary nation that had not participated for many years. The Lions' run came to a disappointing end when they lost 2 games to none to Western Cuba.
As far as IBS V, the Lions were dominant in the group stage, winning all three of their games against the minnows that they faced and advanced straight to the quarterfinals. They then faced the new nation of Stimpsk, whom they defeated in two games, advancing to a semifinal matchup with Super-Llamaland. With Gregoryisgodistan taking a surprise loss to first-time participants Orennana, the championship path was wide open for the Lions. Unfortunately, the Lions lost the series two games to one, but went on to defeat Imota in a rip-roarer of a 3rd-place series. One can only hope the Lions do as well or better in this upcoming IBS.
ScheduleSeries 1: Nova Anglicana BYE
Series 2: Nova Anglicana@Globus Commons
Series 3: Bitburg Barons@Nova Anglicana
Series 4: Nova Anglicana@Free Swiss States
Series 5: Ospira Diamonds@Nova Anglicana
Series 6-10: Repeat of schedule for Series 1-5, with home and away teams reversed
Nickname: Lions
Acronym: NA
Style Mod (if applicable): +1
Home Stadium: Archbishop Stadium in the Capital of Londinium (30,000)
Starting Rotation (order as given)
RHP #17 Felix Murphy, 30 - has settled in at big-league level, nearly unhittable slurve
RHP #27 Justin Garcia, 31 - electric fastball comes in 4 and 2-seam varieties, along with excellent slider, but struggles with command
LHP #36 Chris Keyes, 24 - features a 70 MPH, big, sweeping curve, has better control now than before, but has great stuff, looks have "Keyes to my heart" signs common at games
RHP #28 Nate Freeman, 25 - former top prospect had an inconsistent couple of years at big-league level, but has picked it up of late, devastating fastball/curve/change moves him into starting rotation
LHP #40 Brad Bryan, 23 - tall, slim frame with long arms, hides ball very well, nasty slider, velocity average, but great pitching instincts for someone so young
Bullpen
LHP #44 Noah Hawkins, 34 - fastball tops out at 88, but makes up for it with tough cutter, slider, change, and curve, demoted to long relief, could see spot starts
LHP #14 Kyle Pauley, 30 - setup man, can get lefties and righties with fastball/curve/changeup
RHP #32 André Leclerc, 32 - Quebecois throws a tough frisbee slider from a sidearm slot, death to righties
LHP #50 Ellis Rhodes, 35 - LOOGY (Left-handed One Out Guy) has tricky 2-seam, circle change, bad platoon splits
RHP #56 Sebastian Lafferty, 28, - great natural stuff, has developed into solid major league reliever, not easily rattled
RHP #39 Donté Smiley, 27, - splitter one of the best in the game, just vanishes, average fastball, practical jokester
RHP #37 Danny Hauser, 22, - 98 MPH fastball helped him K 168 in 141 Labrador League innings, also walked 68, plenty of potential, lot of room for improvement, possible spot starter, another late-inning flamethrower
RHP #23 Trent Burkhardt, 29 - wild card of the staff, has been known to hit triple digits, but the next one could be at your head (by accident)
RHP #25 Jamey Conroy, 28 - graduated to national-team closer, led league in saves a year ago, hard, nasty 2-seamer from a low 3/4 slot
C #2 Josh Heckman (R/R), 30 - Heckman has great instincts behind the plate and is a tough man to strike out, is now familiar with the team, can handle any staff in the league impeccably
C #53 Lamar Ford, 22, (L/R), - Ford is a rookie who just hit .264/.322/.437 for the Londinium Capitols, lefty bat is his best tool, but decent defensively, good speed for catcher, loves spaghetti
C #18 Tommie Griffin, 25, (R/R), - Griffin gets Hightower's old number, big bat and big arm, poor lateral mobility, developing pitch-calling, extra pinch-hitter more than catcher
1B #22 Kareem Al-Aniz (L/R), 33 - this Sunni Muslim takes Fridays off to attend prayers, big black man with a big black beard and big black bat, mashes HRs, including a league-record 501-ft bomb, club relies on him for power
CI #26 Khris Caldwell, 25, (S/R), - Caldwell is a big boy who is surprisingly agile at the hot corner, better from the right side, but respectable from the left, club had to put a clause in his contract forbidding eating contests to control his weight
3B #3 Brice Napier (R/R), 35 - Napier has a serious strikeout problem, but if he gets a hold of one, look out
2B #5 Chris Fletcher (S/R), 31 - Fletcher is a 15/15 guy with great range at 2B, not very patient though
SS #6 Jarrod Novak (R/R), 30 - after playing pretty well in last campaign, looks to build on his success, 20/20 guy with good arm and great range, now-veteran badly wants a championship
MI #4 Josh Jennings, 24, (R/R), - Jennings is a phenom who takes Boudreaux's place, blazing speed and great defense, loves to trash talk, sometimes goes too far
OF #16 Martín Torres (S/R), 35 - Torres is a defensive whiz even at 35, .300 hitter but no power, a little less aggressive on basepaths now that he's a step slower, look for him to be used as a pinch-runner often
OF #20 Kelvin Freeman, 23, (L/R), - Freeman won ROY two seasons ago, .291/.341/.467 with 16 homers and 14 steals, cannon arm, improving defensive routes, ladies' man
OF #7 Lance Manning, 22, (S/L), - 5'10 speedster set a rookie record with 52 SB, including 4 in one game, beats out plenty of infield hits, indiscriminate swinger, needs to take more walks, especially now that he's leadoff guy
OF #19 Roman Jennings (R/R), 36 - former MVP, even at 36, he's a 25/10 guy with .300 average, if he has a weakness, it's the high fastball, team needs him to hit in order to succeed
OF #24 Tony "Flick" Barnes (R/R), 26 - Barnes takes over in right for Austin Reeves, has good power and a sweet swing, not bad on basepaths or in the field
Graig Lowman #60 (Manager)
Dante Woodward #1 (Hitting Coach)
Charley Battaglia #47 (Pitching Coach)
Claude Corbett #9 (1st Base Coach)
Freddy Snider #8 (3rd Base Coach)
Marcellus Maloney #15 (Bench Coach)
Rhett Upshaw #52 (Bullpen Coach)
Starting Lineup w/o DH
CF Lance Manning
C Josh Heckman
LF Roman Jennings
1B Kareem Al-Aniz
RF Tony "Flick" Barnes
SS Jarrod Novak
3B Khris Caldwell
2B Chris Fletcher
P Pitcher's Spot
Starting Lineup w/DH
CF Lance Manning
C Josh Heckman
LF Roman Jennings
1B Kareem Al-Aniz
RF Tony "Flick" Barnes
SS Jarrod Novak
DH Kelvin Freeman vs LHP/Brice Napier vs RHP
3B Khris Caldwell
2B Chris Fletcher
My opponent, if they RP first, may do the following:
Choose my runscorers:
Yes/No
Choose my lineup: Yes/
NoFollow my pitching rotation:
Yes/No
Godmod scoring events: Yes/
NoRP injuries to my players:
Yes/No, but not serious ones. Back stiffness, jammed fingers, bruises, etc. Nothing that would keep them out of the lineup for more than 1 game. Reciprocity is expected.
Godmod injuries to my players: Yes/
NoEject my players: Yes/
No, maybe the manager, though.
Godmod other events: Yes/
NoUse DH at home: Yes/
No