World Baseball Classic 23 Everything thread

by **Free South Califas** » Thu Aug 16, 2012 5:11 pm

.						   R H E
Vamprican-Krumbian Conf. (VKCN) 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1  1 2 1
Free South Califas (FSCL)       0 0 0 1 0 0 0 1 X  2 6 0
W - SP Derrick Antonio (1-0). 8 IP, 1 R, 1 ER, 2 H, 2 BB.

Encanto right-handed starter Derrick Antonio steered the Harvest Mice to their second win, settling into a tie with Bergnovinaia for second place. The pitcher's duel between unranked sides was rarely in doubt for the San Diegan and his FSC teammates, except for a brief Vamprican-Krumbian rally in the ninth that involved a double and an RBI single. Antonio was able to get out of the jam with a double play ball that went straight to the shortstop, making the two outs about as easy as they get. The win against unranked opposition at Trolley Dodger Stadium was considered crucial for FSC's long-shot campaign. Antonio's complete game was a cherry on top, allowing the bullpen to rest after a thorough roll call in Civil Citizenry.

Group 4
¹¹Civil Citizenry (CVCZ)      3 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 5  9
Deandean98 (DD98)           1 0 1 0 0 0 0 1 0  3

²⁷Bergnovinaia (BERG)         0 2 0 2 2 0 0 1 2  9
²Zwangzug (ZWZG)             1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0  1

. Group 4                    Pld    W   L    RF   RA   RD    Win % 
1 Civil Citizenry              3    3   0    22   10  +12    1.000
2 Bergnovinaia                 3    2   1    17    8   +9    0.667
3 Free South Califas           3    2   1    10   11   −1    0.667
4 Zwangzug                     3    1   2    11   19   −8    0.333
5 Vamprican-Krumbian Conf.     3    1   2    10   11   -1    0.333
6 Deandean98                   3    0   3     8   19  −11    0.000

In other Group 4 action, the Citiz roasted Deandean98 in an expected rout, while 27th-ranked Bergnovinaia upset 2nd-ranked Zwangzug to put the latter in an uncharacteristically low group position.

Next up for the Harvest Mice is a trip to ²⁷Bergnovinaia, where the expected starter is right-handed knuckleballer Nesrin Beverley of Sycamore Grove. Beverley is also expected to help the bullpen rest up for fireballing Derderian and Kalpana at home vs ²Zwangzug and Deandean98.

by **Zwangzug** » Thu Aug 16, 2012 5:43 pm

(OOC: Okay, sorry, this is bizarre, but I feel like I don't have enough inspiration to do matchday two justice yet. So, this one is for matchday three, and assuming I can keep up motivation-wise I'll do MD2 on one of the off days or something, heh.)

"Well, that was ridiculous. Horrible offensive performance from the Zebras, just horrible. Yarowicz at least competent with that double scoring Flishdam-Baras in the first. And they took the lead! Actually had a lead and then Trell just totally collapsed. A couple two-run homers there in the fourth, and ninth, well by that time she was out of it, it was Pyrans in then. After using up Camott and Sipos-Nemes early on. And no one was really left after the previous win...very few actual young pitchers in here, especially with the way the pro seasons are running now I guess.

So, the question is, what will it take to spark some offense? Now, maybe most of you fans don't realize this, but there are a few people out there who actually e-mailed me earlier today to suggest using the designated hitter. Now, there are two things that shock me about this. First is that so many people, as soon as I started reading, you know, Naomi in Xander's letter about how increased specialization leads to higher levels of talent all around--it's an economics things--so many people would write in and say how opposed you are to the DH. Does no one in this country--except for Naomi in Xander, Rob in Nalchoy, Jun in the FTC once I figured out how to read your crazy e-mail--are you the only three who understand economic theory?

Actually, don't even answer that. This social democracy is some crazy stuff.

Okay, and the second thing that surprised me, is not only that most of you are wrong...I'm looking at you Rebecca in Arlington, Will in Sestview, Hans in the FTC also, are you people just e-mailing me because this is showing up on your social network or whatever, because they told me no one could hear the live thing beyond south Nalchoy and it has to be late for even that...not only are you wrong, but you also care enough to debate the DH. The DH! Of all the things you have the right to debate--like, you have freedom of speech! You can debate your taxes! And the government's priorities! You can debate who is in your government! All these things, and you're sitting around debating the designated hitter.

Like, you can speak out about religion, you can say whether or not you believe in God, or in the, you know, jinxes or whatever. For the record, jinxes totally exist, I have to tell you some time about the no-hitter I broke up to win a bet. It was obviously all me. But I guess that's a story for another time."

by **Saugeais** » Thu Aug 16, 2012 7:11 pm

OOC: Apologies for just the stats, I'll write a proper RP next matchday!

Long overdue win for the Rangers, defeated JonathanAtopia 7-2

Saugeais (SAUG)             1 1 1 0 2 0 1 0 1  7
JonathanAtopia (JONA)       1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1  2

Batting

Player                  AB    H    R    RBI    BB    SO
Marek Atterbury (2b)     4    1    0      0     2     0
Garret Garner (ss)       5    1    0      1     1     2
Aaron Dairon (cf)        5    2    1      0     1     2
Antonio Silva (1b)       4    1    2      2     2     1
Radcliff Snyder (dh)     5    2    1      0     1     0
Hervé Hoefler (lf)       5    1    0      1     0     0
Wolfe Wilkinson (3b)     4    1    1      0     1     0
Pip Joubert (rf)         5    2    0      1     0     0
Nikolas Siekert (c)      5    2    2      2     0     1

Totals                  42   13    7      7     9     6

2B - Joubert (1, 2nd); Atterbury (1, 6th)
HR - Siekert (2, 5th, 1 on, 1 out); Silva (1, 3rd, no on, no out)
SB - Atterbury(1, 2 - 1st, 3rd)

Pitching

Player                          IP     H    R   ER   BB    SO
Grier Adrichem(W, 1-0)         8.0     5    1    1    2     7
Hubert Hutson                  0.2     1    1    1    0     0
Koby Winter                    0.1     0    0    0    0     1

by **Civil Citizenry** » Thu Aug 16, 2012 7:25 pm

CIVIL CITIZENRY 6, FREE SOUTH CALIFAS 3

LINE SCORE

Free South Califas   0 0 0 3 0 0 0 0 0  3
Civil Citizenry      0 0 1 0 0 0 0 5 X  6

STATISTICS - BATTERS

Player             AB    H    R  RBI   BB    BAA   OBP
B. BIRCH (2B)       4    3    1    0    0   .625  .625
J. HAMILTON (SS)    3    1    1    2    0   .167  .375
C. NEWMAN (3B)      2    0    1    0    2   .167  .375
R. TYBALT (LF)      4    1    1    4    0   .375  .375
A. HAMILTON (RF)    4    1    0    0    0   .250  .250
K. EASTON (1B)      2    0    0    0    0   .000  .000
  R. KENDALL (1B)   2    1    0    0    0   .666  .666
K. MILLER (CF)      3    0    1    0    0   .167  .286
T. DENMAN (C)       2    0    0    0    1   .167  .286
P. HUDSON (P)       2    0    0    0    0   .000  .000
  S. SEGAL (P)      0    0    0    0    0    n/a   n/a
  K. BRADBURN (PH)  1    1    1    0    0  1.000 1.000
  R. REMINGTON (P)  0    0    0    0    0    n/a   n/a

STATISTICS - PITCHERS

Player                 IP    H    R   ER   BB   SO
P. HUDSON             6.2    9    3    3    1   10
S. SEGAL (W 1-0)      1.1    1    0    0    1    1
R. REMINGTON (S 1)      1    0    0    0    0    0

SCORING SUMMARY

THIRD INNING. Parris Kalpana has shut down the Citiz through two innings, but he starts off the third allowing a double to Easton. Miller strikes out; Denman works a walk. As expected, pitcher Hudson responds to a Kalpana curveball with a weak dribbler back to the mound; so weak, in fact, that Kalpana doesn't even have time to force Denman at second, and instead opts for the safe second out at first. The top of the order returns, and Birch works an eight-pitch at-bat before poking a single into right-center. Bases loaded, and the nervous Kalpana sees a curveball go awry and into the foot of Jeff Hamilton, scoring Miller. Newman gets solid contact on the first pitch of the next at-bat, but Lusine Claribel tracks it down by the left-field warning track. Citiz 1, Harvest Mice 0.

EIGHTH INNING. Surely the weary Citiz are pleased that Kalpana is out of the game. Normally, Sutton Snowden's high-octane offense isn't so unequivocally shut down by an untested pitcher, but that is the reality of the situation. But it looks like the offense is cleaning up with some ethanol. Bradburn, pinch-hitting for Segal, leads off with a single off reliever Emerson Lennart; Birch continues the budding rally with a grounder that barely rolls through the hole past shortstop Angela Eran. Jeff Hamilton's single to center field scores Bradburn. A shaken Lennart lets up a walk to the imposing Newman, and that is the end of his short, poor performance. Mariana Sanders, a hard-throwing righty who was visibly worried as she entered the game in a tight situation, gives up a 2-1 count to the cleanup hitter, Tybalt, before the batter smashes a grand slam almost into deep center at Centennial Field (the wall is a full 440 feet from the plate). The lead now belongs to the heavily-favored Citiz, Lennart is the scapegoat for ruining a sterling start by Kalpana, and Sanders is already out of the game in favor of lefty flamethrower Salvador Mendez. Austin Hamilton and Kendall (who replaced Easton in the sixth) are set down, but the damage is done. Citiz 6, Harvest Mice 3.

by **Qazox** » Thu Aug 16, 2012 7:27 pm

RP cutoff MD4 scores up shortly.

by **Qazox** » Thu Aug 16, 2012 7:55 pm

Group 1
Cotdelapoms (COTD)          0 0 0 1 4 3 1 0 0  9
Fenbar (DSOF)               1 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 3  5

Lycrabon (LYCR)             1 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0  2
Timmy City (TCTY)           0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1  1

Gibberan (GIBB)             0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0  1
Yesopalitha (YESO)          0 0 1 0 0 0 5 0 X  6


  Group 1                    Pld    W   L    RF   RA   RD    Win % 
1 Cotdelapoms                  4    4   0    26   17   +9    1.000
2 Lycrabon                     4    3   1    20   15   +5    0.750
3 Yesopalitha                  4    3   1    18   10   +8    0.750
4 Timmy City                   4    1   3    14   17   −3    0.250
5 Fenbar                       4    1   3    11   18   −7    0.250
6 Gibberan                     4    0   4    13   25  −12    0.000

Group 2
Super-Llamaland (SLLL)       0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0  1
The Kytler Peninsulae (TKYP) 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 X  2

Taeshan (TAES)              0 0 2 1 0 1 0 0 1  5
Cavalo Nacio (CVNC)         0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0  1

Maklohi Vai (MAKV)          1 0 2 0 0 0 2 0 0  5
Cyborg Holland (CYBH)       1 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0  2


  Group 2                    Pld    W   L    RF   RA   RD    Win % 
1 Super-Llamaland              4    3   1    17    9   +8    0.750
2 Maklohi Vai                  4    3   1    17   14   +3    0.750
3 Taeshan                      4    2   2    17   13   +4    0.500
4 Cyborg Holland               4    2   2    19   20   −1    0.500
5 The Kytler Peninsulae        4    2   2    17   11   +6    0.500
6 Cavalo Nacio                 4    0   4    11   31  −20    0.000

Group 3
Ko-oren (KORN)              0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0  0
Thrilledge (THRL)           0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 X  1

Darmen (DARM)               0 3 2 3 3 0 0 0 0 11
Ambibia (AMBA)              0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 2  3

Sicoutimont (SICT)          0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0  1
Kintratar (KINT)            0 0 0 2 0 4 0 0 X  6


  Group 3                    Pld    W   L    RF   RA   RD    Win % 
1 Darmen                       4    3   1    31   14  +17    0.750
2 Thrilledge                   4    3   1     8    6   +2    0.750
3 Kintratar                    4    2   2    13   15   −2    0.500
4 Sicoutimont                  4    2   2    17   18   −1    0.500
5 Ko-oren                      4    2   2    23   20   +3    0.500
6 Ambibia                      4    0   4    15   34  −19    0.000

Group 4
Deandean98 (DD98)           0 0 0 0 1 1 1 0 0  3
Zwangzug (ZWZG)             0 2 0 1 2 0 0 0 x  5

Free South Califas (FSCL)   0 1 1 0 0 0 0 2 1  5
Bergnovinaia (BERG)         0 0 1 1 0 6 2 0 X 10

Civil Citizenry (CVCZ)          0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0  1
Vamprican-Krumbian Conf. (VKCN) 0 0 0 2 0 0 0 0 X  2


  Group 4                    Pld    W   L    RF   RA   RD    Win % 
1 Bergnovinaia                 4    3   1    27   13  +14    0.750
2 Civil Citizenry              4    3   1    23   12  +11    0.750
3 Vamprican-Krumbian Conf.     4    2   2    12   12    0    0.500
4 Free South Califas           4    2   2    15   21   −6    0.500
5 Zwangzug                     4    2   2    16   22   −6    0.500
6 Deandean98                   4    0   4    11   24  −13    0.000

Group 5
Torisakia (TRSK)            0 0 0 3 0 0 0 0 1  4
Mark50 (MK50)               0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0  1

Eastern Quebec (ESTQ)       3 1 2 0 0 1 1 3 0 11
Homelands our (HOUR)        0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0  1

The Babbage Islands (TBBI)  0 0 0 0 2 0 0 0 1 2  5
Sakurakoku (SAKU)           0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 2 4  7


  Group 5                    Pld    W   L    RF   RA   RD    Win % 
1 Torisakia                    4    4   0    26   13  +13    1.000
2 Sakurakoku                   4    3   1    22   12  +10    0.750
3 Homelands our                4    2   2    13   17   −4    0.500
4 The Babbage Islands          4    1   3    21   29   −8    0.250
5 Eastern Quebec               4    1   3    21   22   −1    0.250
6 Mark50                       4    1   3     7   17  −10    0.250

Group 6
Milchama (MILC)             0 1 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0  2
Tyneala (TYNE)              2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1  3

Luziyca (LUZY)                   0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0  1
The Jahistic Unified Rep. (TJUR) 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1  2

New Matawan (NMAT)          0 1 0 0 1 0 0 0 0  2
Michael VII (MVII)          0 0 0 0 1 0 0 4 X  5


  Group 6                    Pld    W   L    RF   RA   RD    Win % 
1 Michael VII                  4    4   0    24   10  +14    1.000
2 Tyneala                      4    3   1    13   11   +2    0.750
4 Milchama                     4    3   1    17    9   +8    0.750
3 New Matawan                  4    1   3     9   14   -5    0.250
5 The Jahistic Unified Rep.    4    1   3    12   27  −15    0.250
6 Luziyca                      4    0   4     9   13   −4    0.000

Group 7
Kerblaekistan (KERB)        2 0 1 0 1 0 0 0 0  4
Byfugland (BYFG)            0 0 1 0 2 1 0 1 X  5

Lymantatia (LYMN)           0 0 0 0 0 0 2 0 0  2
Westros (WEST)              3 2 0 1 2 1 2 0 X 11

Cassadaigua (CASS)          0 0 2 4 1 0 0 0 0  7
West Guiana (WGUI)          0 0 1 4 1 0 0 2 X  8


  Group 7                    Pld    W   L    RF   RA   RD    Win % 
1 West Guiana                  4    3   1    19   14   +5    0.750
2 Byfugland                    4    3   1    18   14   +4    0.750
3 Westros                      4    2   2    16   11   +5    0.500
4 Kerblaekistan                4    2   2    16   14   +2    0.500
5 Cassadaigua                  4    1   3    22   24   −2    0.250
6 Lymantatia                   4    1   3    11   25  −14    0.250

Group 8
Camwood (CAMW)              0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0  0
Western Cuba (WCBA)         0 1 0 0 0 1 0 1 X  3

Branta Island (BISL)        0 2 0 0 1 0 2 0 0  5
Equestrian States (EQUS)    0 0 0 0 0 0 0 2 0  2

Melatia (MELA)                0 0 1 0 0 0 2 0 0  3
The Better Fire Nation (TBFN) 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0  1


  Group 8                    Pld    W   L    RF   RA   RD    Win % 
1 Melatia                      4    3   1    22   17   +5    0.750
2 Western Cuba                 4    3   1    19   12   +7    0.750
3 Branta Island                4    2   2    19   22   −3    0.500
4 Equestrian States            4    2   2    19    9  +10    0.500
5 The Better Fire Nation       4    1   3    16   23   −7    0.250
6 Camwood                      4    1   3    19   31  −12    0.250

Group 9
JonathanAtopia (JONA)       0 0 1 0 0 0 8 1 1 11
Beldonia (BELD)             0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0  1

Cosumar (COSM)              0 1 2 0 0 0 2 0 0  5
Prostitutlia (PROS)         4 0 4 1 0 0 0 0 X  9

Saugeais (SAUG)             3 0 1 0 0 0 1 0 0  5
Karditan (KARD)             0 0 0 0 1 0 2 0 1  4


  Group 9                    Pld    W   L    RF   RA   RD    Win % 
1 JonathanAtopia               4    3   1    26   18   +8    0.750
2 Beldonia                     4    3   1    22   23   −1    0.750
3 Cosumar                      4    2   2    22   21   +1    0.500
4 Saugeais                     4    2   2    20   17   +3    0.500
5 Karditan                     4    1   3    23   25   −2    0.250
6 Prostitutlia                 4    1   3    21   30   −9    0.250

Group 10
New Montreal States (NMTS)  1 0 1 3 0 0 0 0 0  5
Qazox (QAZX)                0 0 0 0 1 5 0 0 X  6

Falconfar (FALC)            1 1 0 0 0 1 0 0 1  4
Licentiapacisterra (LICP)   0 0 0 0 2 0 0 0 0  2

Thatius (THAT)              0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0  1
Rustika (RUST)              0 1 0 0 0 0 1 0 X  2


  Group 10                   Pld    W   L    RF   RA   RD    Win % 
1 Qazox                        4    4   0    16    8   +8    1.000
2 Thatius                      4    2   2    13    9   +4    0.500
3 Rustika                      4    2   2    15   14   +1    0.500
4 Falconfar                    4    2   2    11   14   −3    0.500
5 Licentiapacisterra           4    1   3    15   21   −6    0.250
6 New Montreal States          4    1   3    16   20   −4    0.250

by **Maklohi Vai** » Thu Aug 16, 2012 8:24 pm

Maklohi Vai (MAKV) 1 0 2 0 0 0 2 0 0 5
Cyborg Holland (CYBH) 1 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 2

Rom Lunomai threw the first complete game in the history of Maklohi Vai's national team, and the Lumai won 5-2. Lunomai allowed two earned runs to go with 5 hits, 1 walk, and 9 strikeouts, also a new Vaian record. Back at home, the TV ratings for the game were the highest for a sports program ever in Maklohi Vai, and the 14th highest of all time.

Maklohi Vai Scoring Summary
1st: Ri’ino Uilnai hit a solo shot to center off a mistake fastball up.

3rd: With one out, Aputo Roma’ai hit a single to left. Iao Laina followed up with another single, a seeing-eye grounder in the 5-6 hole. Ri’ino Uilnai struck out, but Mae'ao followed up with a double, knocking both runners in.

7th: Wolo Rakinalmanai started it off with a double to right center. Pitcher Lunomai bunted him over to third, setting up a two run homer by Aputo Roma'ai to deep right.

An update on selected offensive stats:
HR: Arnao 2, Mae'ao 2, Ri'ino Ulnai 1, Aputo Roma'ai 1, Luimao Makai 1
RBI: Mae'ao 5, Ri'ino Ulnai 3, Aputo Roma'ai 3, Arnao 3, Koilani Ruputuo 1, Luimao Makai 1, Moalna'akai Lai 1

by **Sakurakoku** » Thu Aug 16, 2012 8:57 pm

(OOC note: I am taking the liberty of using TBI's roster from WBC 22, as none is posted in this thread.)

Tanonaka Tanomu!
Bats come alive against bullpen, capped with 4-run 10th inning and Tanonaka walkoff to improve to 3-1

*photo: The Silver Wolves dugout erupts in celebration as Osamu Tanonaka's pinch-hit homer in the 10th completes the comeback.*

Sakurakoku  0 0 0 0 2 0 0 0 1 2 - 5 12 1
Zwangzug    0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 2 4 - 7 14 0

W – Hanamura (1-0)
L - Gaines (*smudge*)

Partial Box Score:
Hitting

Hitters                  AB  R  H  RBI  BB  SO
Y. Katou, CF              4  1  2    2   1   1
M. Kaneko, 3B             5  0  0    0   0   2
H. Horie, DH              4  1  2    0   1   1
M. Yamagishi, RF          4  0  1    0   1   1
G. Furukawa, 2B           5  0  1    0   0   2
S. Takeda, SS             4  1  2    2   1   0
A. Kimihara, 1B           5  0  1    0   0   3
->(b) A. Uemura, PR       0  1  0    0   0   0
K. Kusao, LF              3  0  2    0   0   0
->(a) S. Yasuzumi, PH-LF  2  2  1    1   0   0
K. Suzuki, C              4  0  1    0   0   1
->(c) O. Tanonaka, PH     1  1  1    2   0   0

(a)Reached on error for Kusao in 9th
(b)Pinch ran for Kimihara in 10th
(c)Homered for Suzuki in 10th

Two outs when winning run scored.

Batting:
2B - Horie in 8th, Takeda in 8th, Kimihara in 10th
HR - Katou in 9th, Takeda in 10th, Tanonaka in 10th
Reached on Error - Yasuzumi in 9th
GIDP - Kaneko in 3rd

Pitching

Pitchers                 IP  H  R  ER  BB  SO
S. Aishi                6.0  5  2   2   2   2
H. Junji                2.0  2  0   0   0   4
R. Tachibana            1.0  3  2   2   0   0
N. Minamoto             0.1  2  1   1   2   1
Y. Hanamura (W, 1-0)    0.2  0  0   0   0   0

Tachibana pitched to one batter in 10th.

Wild pitch - Minamoto in 9th

Scoring Summary
Top 5th: Miller tripled to right, Adams scored. The Babbage Islands, 1-0.
Top 5th: Buck doubled to left-center, Miller scored. The Babbage Islands, 2-0.
Bottom 8th: Takeda doubled to left, Horie scored, Yamagishi to third. The Babbage Islands, 2-1.
Top 9th: Miller doubled to left, Adams scored, Miller out at third. The Babbage Islands, 3-1.
Bottom 9th: Katou homered to right-center, Yasuzumi scored. Tied, 3-3.
Top 10th: Rowe doubled to center, Buck scored. The Babbage Islands, 4-3.
Top 10th: Garcia singled to left, Rowe scored, Baldwin to third. The Babbage Islands, 5-3.
Bottom 10th: Takeda homered to left-center. The Babbage Islands, 5-4.
Bottom 10th: Yasuzumi singled to right, Uemura scored. Tied, 5-5.
Bottom 10th: Tanonaka homered to left, Yasuzumi scored. Sakurakoku, 7-5.

by **Qazox** » Thu Aug 16, 2012 9:15 pm

New Montreal States (NMTS)  1 0 1 3 0 0 0 0 0  5
Qazox (QAZX)                0 0 0 0 1 5 0 0 X  6

Espinoza's HR leads Eagles comeback.

We'd like to apologize for the mistake in yesterday's article; Qazox will start their 4 of 5 road trip on Friday, not Today as previously reported. As for today's gaame, Qazox rallied from a 5-0 deficit to beat New Montreal States 6-5 to remain undefeated in group play at 4-0. A 5 run sixth was sparked by a 3-run shot by Arnold Espinoza that just barely cleared the left-center wall. Sean Leva got the win in relief of David Christian who was shelled for 5 runs in just 3.1 innings.

SCORING SUMMARY

New Montreal States 1st: (David Christian pitching for Qazox) 2B singled to left. RF doubled to center, 2B to third. 1B flied out to center, 2B scored. CF grounded out to second, RF to third. 3B struck out. 1 run on 2 hits, 1 LOB 1-0 NMS.

New Montreal States 3rd: SP#4 grounded out to pitcher. 2B doubled to left. RF singled to right-center, 2B scored. 1B grounded out to third. CF walked, RF to second. 3B singled to center, RF out at home advancing (8-4-2). 1 run on 3 hits, 2 LOB. 2-0 NMS.

New Montreal States 4th: LF doubled to left. SS doubled to center, LF scored. C singled to right, SS to third. SP#4 sacrificed to third, C to second. 2B doubled to left, SS and C scored. <Pitching change: Aaron Smith in for David Christian>. RF flied out to center, 2B to third. 1B grounded out to first. 3 runs on 4 hits, 1 LOB. 5-0 NMS.

QAZOX 5th: Bryant doubled to left. <Pinch-hitter: Toby Wade batting for Aaron Smith>. Wade singled to third, Bryant to third. Hodgman grounded into double-play (4-6-3), Bryant scored, Wade out at second. Jimenez flied out to left. 1 run on 2 hits, 0 LOB. 5-1 NMS

QAZOX 6th: Hamilton walked. Dodge singled to right, Hamilton to second. Zimmerman flied out to left. Espinoza 390ft HR to left-center; Hamilton, Dodge and Espinoza scored. Lee doubled to left. Bryant reached on dropped third strike. <pitching change: RP#2 in for SP#4>. <Pinch-hitter: Martin Santos batting for David Scott>. Santos doubled to right-center, Lee and Bryant scored. Hodgman grounded out to third. Jimenez struck out. 5 runs on 4 hits, 1 LOB. 6-5 Qazox

by **Free South Califas** » Thu Aug 16, 2012 9:44 pm

[I am using male pronouns for simplicity's sake, since my usual gender-neutral pronouns are unusual in English and may not be appropriate for international communication of technical details.]

Let's get into some pitching strategy and tactics. A starting pitcher is a different animal from a reliever, akin to the difference between a distance runner and a sprinter. The analogy is pretty much air-tight: pitchers who have played both positions will tell you that starters use a different set of skills, endurance skills; and vice versa. That being said, there is a wide variety between starters: some are quick, efficient, and are a threat to work all nine innings each time; a few more have the occasional complete game, but usually pitch 7 or 8 innings on a good day; the rest aim for 5.7-8 innings. Either way, at some point a relief pitcher is substituted in. If he is brought in while his team is on defense--literally relieving the other pitcher of his duty right there on the spot--then it is as simple as that, though sometimes managers will get a little more tactical with a "double switch". A double switch means two players are substituted for, at the same time, so that the new players switch positions in the batting order (when they come up to bat next). For example, you may want to pull out your pitcher, but you know that the #9 spot will be called up when you come to bat next, so you actually substitute another fielder for the pitcher, and substitute your relief pitcher for the duplicate fielder (the one you brought on the first substitute for). That would make the new fielder come up to bat in the #9 spot, and the pitcher's turn would come up later (higher on the lineup card). Obviously, you want to pick the right lineup spot to put the new pitcher, so you don't face the same problem again in the next inning.

On the other hand, if your pitcher is called up to bat (in your offensive inning), you can send up a "pinch hitter" (one of your fielders from the bench) to bat for him. That pitcher is now out of the game. This is when you send up a right-handed batter if the enemy pitcher is left-handed, for example; but the other manager can then swap in a right-handed pitcher. The tactics of this are relatively complex, because of substitution rules. Once a pitcher is replaced, he's out for good. (There is a ritual of the manager coming out to the mound, consoling the pitcher with a realistic appraisal of their work and progress, the pitcher may or may not argue his case, then hands the ball to the manager (unless he has convinced him to let him stay in the game), symbolically ending his involvement in the game and officially signaling his exit.) However, the batting team can send out whoever they want to stand in the on-deck circle and look like they're coming up to bat next. So you can bluff the other team and try to force them to abandon their pitcher early; or, the other team might bring on a right-handed reliever right after your right-handed pinch hitter steps into the batter's box (registering his entrance into the game). At this point, you can sub out for a different pinch-hitter, but you'll waste the first guy for the day if you do that. Anyway, once your next defensive inning starts, you can choose to simply replace the pinch-hitter with a relief pitcher, or you can do a double switch like above, which usually involves leaving the pinch-hitter in as a defensive substitution and putting the new pitcher in place of the fielder that the PH made redundant.

Now is a good time to return to the base-stealing/defending dance, from the perspective of pitching tactics. When someone gets on base, the first thing they need to do (once play resumes) is establish their presence and take a lead of a few feet or yards toward the next base. It's a game of chicken, because at (almost) any time, the pitcher can throw to the base that the runner has already earned, and if the pitcher's teammate touches the base while holding the ball before the runner can return and tag the base, the runner is out. On the other hand, if the pitcher gets nervous and misses his teammate with the throw; or, there is miscommunication on defense and the fielder doesn't cover the base in time; the ball can go rattling around in one of the dugouts while the runner freely advances and/or scores, turning a nuisance into a nightmare.

Pitchers and baserunners are always trying to fake each other out and test each other's limits. Every pitcher has his own philosophy regarding this dance. Some like to make it look like they don't care, then whip around with a quick throw to the base, trying to catch the runner off guard. Others give lots of dirty looks and defensive throws. Many relief pitchers seriously don't care, and will let any runner take his chance with the catcher's arm. One legendary American pitcher used his stare to make runners back down, and he prided himself in never having to throw to base; he said he "only [had] so many pitches in my arm and [didn't] want to waste them on first base". One time he did throw to first, and the first baseman was so surprised that he dropped the ball and the guy stole second anyway!

The peculiarities of base stealing are different from one base to another, so let's go bag by bag.

They say "you can't steal first base", but that's not entirely true. If you strike out, you can run to first base and force the catcher to tag you out or throw the ball to the first baseman. This almost never works, but sometimes the catcher loses his focus and throws wide, and you get to take second too! That's one error on the defense (cather or first baseman, whoever is at fault), not two stolen bases, technically. Some batters make the catcher do it every time. This is the general notion in South Califas, although some batters can't be bothered, of course.

Second base is the most commonly stolen (and attempted) base. It is the furthest away from the catcher, so it takes the longest for the ball to get there, giving the baserunner his most realistic chance to successfully steal a base. It is easier to steal on an off-speed (slow) and/or breaking pitch, because it takes that much longer for the catcher to get the ball in the first place, nevermind throw it to base. The other thing that makes second base the most tempting is that the shortstop and second baseman both stand off to the side of second base by several yards, which means that defensive communication is required for a glove to be there when the ball arrives. Therefore, it is more likely (though rare on good teams) for the ball to simply fly past second base and into center field during a steal attempt, at which point second base is a lost cause and the runner may advance even further, and/or score. This is why catchers, second basemen and shortstops are chosen for their defense first, and batting second. They could all be great hitters, but you can get by at those positions (on some teams) without a ton of absolutely consistent hitting.

Third base is much less likely to be stolen/attempted, because it's just 90 feet from the catcher. Some degree of deception, combined with a fast runner, a slow pitch and maybe a defensive mistake, is required to steal third. However, it is also a dangerous place for the defense in steal situations: if the catcher's aim is off, or the third baseman is too far out of position, the ball could fly into left field and rattle around in the bullpen while the runner scores with ease. The third baseman could be in a number of different defensive positions depending on the tactical situation, which is best detailed in a separate edition, I think; but suffice it to say that this is one of many reasons the third base position is informally called "the hot corner", and third basemen must be solid defenders to get playing time (although they have also had to be good hitters since about the 1970s, which is also when catchers were starting to be expected to hit a little better than before).

Stealing home, as noted before, is dangerous to life and limb. It happens now and then, sometimes successfully, but it is exceptionally rare for obvious reasons: the catcher doesn't have to throw it anywhere, the pitch has to be really slow or curvy (making the catcher chase it in the dirt), the runner has to be crazy-fast or get a huge lead off third somehow, etc. However, a defensive error (wild pitch, passed ball (catcher drops the pitch), or throwing error) can lead to a batter running home and scoring, which does not count as a stolen base.

To be continued...

by **Ko-oren** » Fri Aug 17, 2012 3:53 am

Two losses later

After a great start, the Greenblue baseball team lost their second consecutive match. The record is now 2-2: 2 wins, 2 losses. In Group 3, that is very close together except for Ambibia, the nation with a 0-4 record, Ko-oren is now 5th out of six. Darmen and Thrilledge both have 3-1, and Kintratar, Sicoutimont and Ko-oren have 2-2. Darmen has a +17 RD, mainly due to their huge victory over Ambibia, then comes Ko-oren with a +3 RD. Still, because the tournament uses a H2H tiebreaker, Ko-oren is 5th. They are also the team with the second most runs for, and second most runs against. Thrilledge are known for their low-run games: 8 for, 6 against. Compare that to Ko-oren’s 23-20, or Ambibia’s 15-34.

As for the match: Ko-oren lost to Thrilledge 0-1. The only run of the match came as late as the eighth inning. Until this point, the match was a tactical game around switching pitchers and batters, players simultaneously trying to steal bases and long waiting times between players batting or pitching. Even though the last inning was cut off after Ko-oren could not get a run in the ninth inning, the match lasted 2:56. There was also a record-low hitting during the match, and Thrilledge’s only run came from a free walk to first base, another free walk to second base, a base stolen to third, and only the run home was from a ball that was actually hit.

The next match is against Kintratar, and to aid the H2H record and the W-L record, this must be won to keep on with the top teams of the group. Still, the group is very close together, illustrated by Ko-oren’s win against Darmen, but loss against Sicoutimont and Thrilledge: everything can happen.

Darmen – Ko-oren 5-6
Ko-oren – Ambibia 12-8
Sicoutimont – Ko-oren 6-5
Ko-oren – Thrilledge 0-1

by **Kintratar** » Fri Aug 17, 2012 5:53 am

Udep Jener had a great game, only letting 3 hits get by him, and only 1 run scored for Sicoutmont the whole game. Kintratar had a few fantastic innings, and that was enough to get them to a win and stop that losing streak.

Kintratar's Scoring Summary:

4th Inning: Quentra Jinars hits it above the 2B's arm, single. Adet Bedin hits one that's barely inside, and it's gone.

6th Inning: Kilikatre Heyiv lands one in deep right field, double. Werran Klevpin hits a ball that's past the 2nd baseman, single. Men on 1st and 3rd. Hegik Sakato homers it. 3 runs scored. Quentra Jinars triples it, Adet Bedin singles, enough to get Jinars home.

Result: 1 - 6, Kintratar's favor

by **Western cuba** » Fri Aug 17, 2012 9:06 am

Béisbol en La Mañana

Con Diego y Miguel

Announcer:
Diego:
Miguel:

Welcome to another edition of Béisbol en La Mañana, con Diego y Miguel on WCSN Radio brought to you by Sanchez & Hernandez, you need a lawyer. You better call Sanchez & Hernandez.

"That was just awesome yesterday, did you see Ramon Rivero. Oh what am I saying! We were at the game together! For a second I thought Rivero had the no-hitter."

"Me too, too bad Ben Harris had to ruin that with two outs in the eighth."

"Oh I know! Well at least is wasn't two outs in the ninth. Now that would of been sort of heartbreaking"

"Some what, we got the win. That's what mattered, but oh boy. Ramon Rivero did exactly what every expected yesterday, maybe even a little more. And that's hard, considering how much media attention he was getting up to this game".

"To tell you the truth Miguel, I thought that Rivero was going to submit to the pressure. Well he proved me and thousands of doubters across Western Cuba wrong".

"Yeah, too bad Adrian Soto's day didn't turn out like Rivero. The man is now finding himself along with Ben Harris as one of the most disliked people in Western Cuba".

"Did you see on tv those moltov cocktails bringing thrown outside his home? Man, some of those people had quite the arm."

"I was there, and you didn't want to be there. I got out as soon as possible. Riot police were all over the place, people were trying to wrestle the police. It was just nuts."

"Nobody got killed right?"

"I don't think so, which is amazing. Good thing Soto resigned though, it was the right thing to do."

"Yep, and you know what. Were not doing the right thing right now, were supposed to be talking about baseball! Not about politics!"

"Well some of those people throwing those fire bottles had quite an arm, maybe they should try out for the baseball team"

"I wouldn't doubt it if they did play. But anyway back to topic. So do you think the rest of the group stage is bright for Western Cuba."

"If they manage to play like yesterday, we shouldn't have a problem. This Camwood team beat Melatia, the team who we lost to. Sure it was the ultimate meltdown by Melatia, and the ultimate comeback by Camwood, but a win is a win. We should of no problem beating Melatia and every other team in our group. Heck, I think we should be in the championship"

"Well that seems a bit bold, we haven't even faced Branta Island yet. Were not even halfway through the group stage".

"I know, but after watching our boys play yesterday. Were number one in the world for a reason, I can see us repeating as classic champs. This win has me pumped, with the last two performances by our pitchers. I can't wait to see what Fernan Palomo has to offer in this classic. And when Dante Maradona's blisters heal. Well look out!"

"We'll see about that, you know what. Since the game is in Branta Island tonight. Why don't you come over my house tonight?

"Alright, and while were at it. Let me place a bet."

"Sure, what do you want to propose?"

"Well I have to bets, one is for five. And the other is for twenty. Five is that Palomo will shutout Branta Island tonight. The other twenty is that Western Cuba wins its next six games, so that would be the rest of the group".

"You have yourself a bet, it sort of feels guilty though. Betting that my team won't win all of the rest of its games in the group"

"Think of it as a win-win I suppose, not to mention its fun to put money on the line".

"Are we even allowed to place bets on here"?

"I have no clue, and look at that. Our time is up, we'll see you guys tomorrow. Make sure to watch the game tonight, and blame Diego if we lose tonight".

"Yeah, not funny".

by **Melatia** » Fri Aug 17, 2012 10:46 am

The Prospect: Part IV

"Honk." The taxi sped through traffic, weaving left and right. Traffic wasn't normally bad at this time of day. Something was strange. The taxi stopped behind a large black pickup truck. Bumper-to-bumper, they rolled forward slowly, the conglomerate of vehicles moving like a giant rock rolling down a gentle slope. The traffic snaked along the highway. Ashton looked at the number the woman had given him. "540-4845," it read. Ashton lounged back in the seat. He day-dreamed off her, slowly nodding off.

The car rolled around another turn. Ashton's eyes flickered to a bright light. His eyes widened as he saw what it was. To the side of the road was a giant car crash, 10 or 11 cars, lying on the grass. Some were rolled over, some on fire. It was terrible. Ashton jumped up, unlocking the door in one quick motion. He flew out of the door, sprinting towards the accident. "Hey wait a minute," said the taxi driver, but Ashton ignored his calls, running to the crash.

He reached the scene of the accident. There was fire everywhere. Firetrucks had arrived and were starting to spray down the cars. Ashton heard screams and a cry for help. He saw a child, no more than 2 years old, sitting in a rolled over car, crying. Ashton ran towards the child. The car was right next to the flames, and Ashton could feel the heat of the fire burning into his skin. He tried to open the door, but it was jammed. A window was open, and Ashton reached his hands into it. He grabbed the child and pulled him towards the door. The heat burned and the flames licked near the edge of the car. Any second it would hit the gas tank. Ashton pulled once more. The child popped out of the car, kicking and screaming and flew to the ground. Ashton scooped him up and ran. Inside the car a flame licked the gas tank. "Boom!"

by **Darmen** » Fri Aug 17, 2012 12:53 pm

Prince drives in five, Darmen moves into first Place

Team    1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9  T  H  E
Darmen  0 3 2 3 3 0 0 0 0  11 16 0
Ambibia 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 2   3  7 0
Time: 2:30 Attendence: Unknown

Batting
Player    AB H  R  2B 3B HR RBI Other
Gary-lf   5  2  1  1  0  0  1 
Lund-c    5  2  1  0  0  0  2
Garret-1b 5  3  2  0  0  0  1   1 SO
Prince-ss 5  4  2  1  0  2  5
Parish-2b 4  1  1  0  0  0  0   1 BB
Thomas-3b 5  0  0  0  0  0  0   1 SO
Payne-cf  4  1  1  0  0  0  0   1 BB, 2 SO
Hilton-rf 5  3  3  0  0  1  3
Samson-p  4  0  0  0  0  0  0   4 SO
Totals    42 16 11 2  0  3  11  2 BB, 8 SO

Pitching
Player         IP  SO BB H ER R Other
Samson (W 1-0) 8.1 6  3  4 2  2
Autenberry      .1 0  1  3 1  1 1 WP
Snider          .1 1  0  0 0  0
Totals         9   7  4  7 3  3 1 WP

----------------------------------------

Batting Totals
Player            AB  H  R  2B 3B HR RBI SB BB SO Avg. OBP
Tim Prince-ss     20  16 6  4  0  5  10  0  0  0  .800 .800
Baldric Hilton-rf 15  7  6  1  0  2  7   0  3  0  .466 .555
Noble Gary-lf     16  6  4  1  1  0  2   1  4  1  .375 .500
Ernesto Parish-2b 16  6  4  0  0  0  0   0  3  4  .375 .473
Micky Thomas-3b   19  6  3  1  0  1  5   0  0  2  .315 .315
Jaylen Garret-1b  19  5  3  0  0  0  1   0  1  3  .263 .300
Roland Payne-cf   18  4  4  0  0  0  0   0  1  3  .222 .263
Hugo Lund-c       14  3  1  0  0  0  2   0  0  0  .214 .214
Tracy Cannon-dh   5   1  0  0  0  0  0   0  1  1  .200 .333
Stacey Samson-p   4   0  0  0  0  0  0   0  0  4  .000 .000
Bart Rennold-p    4   0  0  0  0  0  0   0  0  2  .000 .000
Hiraku Ott-c      3   0  0  0  0  0  0   0  2  3  .000 .400
Maxwell Travis-p  3   0  0  0  0  0  0   0  1  0  .000 .250
Totals            156 54 31 7  1  8  26  1  16 23 .346 .407

Pitching Totals
Pitcher              IP  SO BB H  ER R  WP ERA   WHIP
Allen Grey (1-0)     9   13 1  2  1  1  0   1.00  0.333
Bart Rennold (1-0)   9   5  2  7  4  4  0   4.00  1.000
Stacey Samson (1-0)  8.1 6  3  4  2  2  0   2.16  0.840
Maxwell Travis       6   2  3  4  2  2  0   3.00  1.167
Brendon Snider (0-1) 1.1 2  0  1  1  1  0   6.75  0.750
Bobbie Monday        1   0  2  4  3  3  1  27.00  6.000
Takehiko Autenberry   .1 0  1  3  1  1  1  27.00 12.000
Totals               35  28 12 25 14 14 2   3.60  1.057

by **Yesopalitha** » Fri Aug 17, 2012 2:40 pm

The Freedom's Altar Daily
Serving the Capital for twenty years

TERROR RETURNS, ASSASSINS REGROUP WITH WIN
JOHANSON RETURNS TO USUAL FORM AS TEAM BOUNCES BACK

Gibberan              0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0  1 4  0
Yesopalitha           0 0 1 0 0 0 5 0 X  6 14 0

Melody Johanson returned to duty for the first time since her shaky start against Timmy City, and pitched seven strong innings to get the win as the Assassins took care of the team from Gibberan to move on from their defeat at the hands of Lycrabon and get ready for a game against Cotdelapoms, a team that actually upset Lycrabon to take the lead at this stage of Group 1 competition.

Although there wasn't much run support at the beginning of the match, a five-run seventh inning was enough to propel the team ahead of Gibberan. Valentin Sorin continued his hot streak in his first World Baseball Classic, going four of five with four RBI's and a three-run home run in the seventh inning.

The story of this game, however, was how Melody Johanson returned to the form that most people are used to seeing her in - mixing up pitches, keeping batters off-balance, and getting thirteen strikeouts.

"It's good to have your ace back," stated Coach DeMarco, "And she looked really sharp out there today. Though the bats didn't start connecting till late, we did enough to win, and that is what counts. It'll still be a while till we start playing to our fullest potential, but we looked pretty good out there."

Next, Victor Van Cruz will attempt to build upon his solid start against Fenbar by going against the nation of Cotdelapoms. The Apples lead the group with one game to go before the halfway point of the competition.

"It was good to get a solid win after the loss to Lycrabon," commented Valentin Sorin, "It's good to not get in a rhythm of losing. Now, we have a job to do in facing Cotdelapoms, but if we don't start getting into gear about now, then we pretty much won't get far in this competition."

The Assassins vs. the Apples. Sounds like a joke, but it will be a key match in Group 1 play.

by **Falconfar** » Fri Aug 17, 2012 3:34 pm

The Imperial Tribune
The most read paper in the Queendom of Falconfar

WINNING STREAK HITS TWO
VON HELZBuRG KEY IN MOMENTUM-BUILDING WIN

Falconfar             1 1 0 0 0 1 0 0 1  4 9 0
Licentiapacisterra    0 0 0 0 2 0 0 0 0  2 7 0

LICENTIAPACISTERRA - In a game that was important due to the fact that they were facing an unranked squad, the Falconfar Imperials managed to hold an early lead and win, 4-2, to improve to 2-2 in group play before facing undefeated group leaders Qazox.

Evan Dixon had a quality start, lasting seven innings and giving up two runs in five hits, while striking out nine. It was his best start for the Imperials in the international stage, and the impact of it showed. It also helped to have some amazing plays in the outfield, with Frederick Von Helzburg robbing a homer in the fifth inning that could've given Licentiapacisterra some of the momentum back.

For the Imperials' scoring, Von Helzberg did most of the heavy lifting, with an RBI double in the second, sixth, and ninth innings. He is turning out to be the guy to rely on when the Imperials need a key hit, meaning it may be that in a few games, teams may start pitching around him so that they can get easy outs from other, less experienced, more mistake-prone batters.

The team is doing a lot better than they were doing the last cycle, with a record of 2-2. Perhaps, a 5-5 record is attainable, but before they can start thinking about final records, they must turn to the next game - a game against group leaders Qazox, a team that has been around longer than Falconfar has had a professional league in baseball. Well, granted, a lot of squads have been around longer than that, but Qazox is one of the originals, a team with a lot of history and a lot of power.

Will the Imperials end the first half with a shock upset? Or an expected loss? That remains to be seen... But this team will be harder to beat than the last classic's.

by **Zwangzug** » Fri Aug 17, 2012 5:50 pm

"The totals on the scoreboard are correct. You know, the totals on the scoreboard have never not been correct as long as I've been watching baseball, and that's a while. I mean at the end of the game, when they're just totalling runs, hits, and errors. And they must have been doing that for a while, because, errors? There's not even that many of them and I'm guessing it's just a holdover from way before all our times, back when people didn't know how to play defense.

Like, in the middle of the games, sometimes yeah the totals haven't been correct. It'll be one and two, or a full count, and the scoreboard will still say zero balls and zero strikes. Or the scoreboard will take like into the eleventh inning to even come on at all. Or the guy working it will clearly not be able to read or do anything, so you'll just have upside-down numbers hanging out in the manual line score slots. Of course the best part about that is the ones where you have line scores for all the different games and whoever's back there can't ever read any of them, so it's just random gibberish and you have to guess who's playing who. Maybe they'll color-code them so you can guess by the team colors...

Oh, what's this, everyone in your country knows how to read? Well la-dee-dah, what an erudite bunch we have here. Okay. You fancy science types probably even have the electric scoreboards, which again, are usually correct far more often than not.

But all the same. For the Zebras, five runs, eight hits, no errors. Deandean98: three runs, six hits, one error. And do I have to do left on base? No, it's not even showing left on base. That's good."

by **Taeshan** » Fri Aug 17, 2012 5:52 pm

"Two wins in a row man, this is great. We are finally hitting the stride we had last season near the middle of the season."

"Yeah bro. This comeback in play is really sweet. If we can really turn this season around we may well be headed to greatness."

"But don't call it a comeback. You know what happens when people say there is a huge comeback. Huge comeback, and things go to shit."

"Things probably will go to shit. Have you read the history books. Murphy's law. Taeshan sucks at everything."

"Touche. We are screwed."

"Like a llama up a grape tree."

"That makes no sense."

"So's your face."

"OMG."

by **THRILLEDGE** » Fri Aug 17, 2012 7:10 pm

"Welcome to the post game show here on TNSN Radio presented by Magowan Motors, I'm Kevin Ruhn along with ex-pitcher Gavin Rabasco. The Dreads pulled out a close one tonight against Ko-oren behind a gem by Quincy Martabano."

"A gem it was. Being a pitcher I love games like this. Martabano was controlling the zone with his fastball and getting ahead in the count and putting hitters away with his split changeup."

"He struck out 12 today in eight innings pitched but not only that, his pitches created many ground ball outs. All 3 hits Ko-oren had were ground ball singles that found their way through the gaps in the infield. In fact, only 2 balls left the infield in the air today."

"That's what pitching down in the zone will do for you. Pitches down get hit down."

"Not to much offense for the Dreads though."

"Not at all but they got it when they needed it and that's all you can ask for."

"After back to back walks to Jayhawk Edmonson and Sandy Alvarez, and a stolen base by Edmonson, Davis McKinley stepped up to the plate. Let's take a listen..."

...and after that stolen base you know the pitcher's mind has to be on Alvarez at first knowing his speed. I wouldn't be surprised if he was on the move with one out. The 1-2 pitch to McKinley...Hit towards the right side of the infield and through for a base hit! Edmonson scores and the Dreads are on the board! That pitch was down and away and McKinley slapped it to right...

"That's the only offense the Dreads needed as Ashwood shut down Ko-oren in the ninth."

"I like what I'm seeing from the kid; he's pitching well. I'm excited to see what else he has in store for the rest of the WBC."

"The Dreads face off against Darmen tomorrow who thrashed Ambibia today by a score of 11 to 3. It's a battle of the top two teams in Group 3 tomorrow in Darmen. It's sure to be exciting as Troy Shrewsbury makes his WBC debut. You don't want to miss it."

by **Qazox** » Fri Aug 17, 2012 7:29 pm

RP cut off for MD 5 Scores up shortly

by **Qazox** » Fri Aug 17, 2012 7:52 pm

Group 1
Yesopalitha (YESO)          3 0 0 0 0 1 2 0 0  6
Cotdelapoms (COTD)          1 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0  2

Timmy City (TCTY)           0 0 1 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0  2
Gibberan (GIBB)             0 0 0 0 1 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1  3

Fenbar (DSOF)               3 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 2  6
Lycrabon (LYCR)             0 0 4 0 3 2 2 0 X 11


  Group 1                    Pld    W   L    RF   RA   RD    Win % 
1 Cotdelapoms                  5    4   1    28   23   +5    0.800
2 Yesopalitha                  5    4   1    24   12  +12    0.800
3 Lycrabon                     5    4   1    31   21  +10    0.800
4 Timmy City                   5    1   4    16   20   −4    0.200
5 Gibberan                     5    1   4    16   27  −11    0.200
6 Fenbar                       5    1   4    17   29  −12    0.200

Group 2
Cyborg Holland (CYBH)       0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0  0
Super-Llamaland (SLLL)      1 2 0 0 0 0 0 1 X  4

Cavalo Nacio (CVNC)         6 0 0 4 0 0 0 2 0 12
Maklohi Vai (MAKV)          0 0 1 0 0 0 0 1 1  3

The Kytler Peninsulae (TKYP) 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0  1
Taeshan (TAES)               0 0 0 1 0 0 1 0 X  2


  Group 2                    Pld    W   L    RF   RA   RD    Win % 
1 Super-Llamaland              5    4   1    21    9  +12    0.800
2 Taeshan                      5    3   2    19   14   +5    0.600
3 Maklohi Vai                  5    3   2    20   26   −6    0.600
4 Cyborg Holland               5    2   3    19   24   −5    0.400
5 The Kytler Peninsulae        5    2   3    18   13   +5    0.400
6 Cavalo Nacio                 5    1   4    23   34  −11    0.200

Group 3
Kintratar (KINT)            0 0 0 0 0 1 1 0 0  2
Ko-oren (KORN)              0 0 0 3 0 1 0 0 X  4

Ambibia (AMBA)              0 1 4 0 1 0 0 0 0  6
Sicoutimont (SICT)          0 1 0 0 0 1 0 0 0  2

Thrilledge (THRL)           2 0 0 3 0 0 0 0 0  5
Darmen (DARM)               0 0 0 3 0 0 3 0 X  6


  Group 3                    Pld    W   L    RF   RA   RD    Win % 
1 Darmen                       5    4   1    37   19  +18    0.800
2 Ko-oren                      5    3   2    27   22   +5    0.600
3 Thrilledge                   5    3   2    13   12   +1    0.600
4 Kintratar                    5    2   3    15   19   −4    0.400
5 Sicoutimont                  5    2   3    19   24   −5    0.400
6 Ambibia                      5    1   4    21   36  −15    0.200

Group 4
Vamprican-Krumbian Conf. (VKCN) 0 0 0 2 0 1 2 0 1  6
Deandean98 (DD98)               0 0 2 0 0 0 0 0 0  2

Bergnovinaia (BERG)         0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0  0
Civil Citizenry (CVCZ)      0 0 0 1 0 2 0 1 X  4

Zwangzug (ZWZG)             0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 1  2
Free South Califas (FSCL)   1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0  1


  Group 4                    Pld    W   L    RF   RA   RD    Win % 
1 Civil Citizenry              5    4   1    27   12  +15    0.800
2 Bergnovinaia                 5    3   2    27   17  +10    0.600
3 Vamprican-Krumbian Conf.     5    3   2    18   14   +4    0.600
4 Zwangzug                     5    3   2    18   23   −5    0.600
5 Free South Califas           5    2   3    16   23   −7    0.400
6 Deandean98                   5    0   5    13   30  −17    0.000

Group 5
Sakurakoku (SAKU)           0 2 1 0 1 0 0 0 2  6
Torisakia (TRSK)            0 0 0 0 1 3 0 1 0  5

Homelands our (HOUR)        2 0 0 0 3 1 0 0 1  7
The Babbage Islands (TBBI)  0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0  1

Mark50 (MK50)               1 0 0 0 0 2 0 1 0  4
Eastern Quebec (ESTQ)       1 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0  2


  Group 5                    Pld    W   L    RF   RA   RD    Win % 
1 Sakurakoku                   5    4   1    28   17  +11    0.800
2 Torisakia                    5    4   1    31   19  +12    0.800
3 Homelands our                5    3   2    20   18   +2    0.600
4 Mark50                       5    2   3    11   19   −8    0.400
5 The Babbage Islands          5    1   4    22   36  −14    0.200
6 Eastern Quebec               5    1   4    23   26   −3    0.200

Group 6
Michael VII (MVII)          0 0 0 2 0 0 0 0 0  2
Milchama (MILC)             0 2 3 1 0 0 0 0 X  6

The Jahistic Unified Rep. (TJUR) 2 0 0 1 1 0 1 0 0  5
New Matawan (NMAT)               0 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0  2

Tyneala (TYNE)              0 2 0 0 0 2 0 3 1  8
Luziyca (LUZY)              0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1  1


  Group 6                    Pld    W   L    RF   RA   RD    Win % 
1 Milchama                     5    4   1    23   11  +12    0.800
2 Tyneala                      5    4   1    21   12   +9    0.800
3 Michael VII                  5    4   1    26   16  +10    0.800
4 The Jahistic Unified Rep.    5    2   3    17   29  −12    0.400
5 New Matawan                  5    1   4    11   19   -8    0.200
6 Luziyca                      5    0   5    10   21  −11    0.000

Group 7
West Guiana (WGUI)          0 0 4 0 2 0 0 1 0  7
Kerblaekistan (KERB)        0 0 1 2 0 0 1 0 0  4

Westros (WEST)              0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0  0
Cassadaigua (CASS)          0 1 0 0 2 1 0 0 x  4

Byfugland (BYFG)            0 3 0 0 3 0 3 0 1 10
Lymantatia (LYMN)           0 1 2 0 1 0 0 0 2  6


  Group 7                    Pld    W   L    RF   RA   RD    Win % 
1 West Guiana                  5    4   1    26   18   +8    0.800
2 Byfugland                    5    4   1    28   20   +8    0.800
3 Cassadaigua                  5    2   3    26   24   +2    0.400
4 Kerblaekistan                5    2   3    20   21   −1    0.400
5 Westros                      5    2   3    16   15   +1    0.400
6 Lymantatia                   5    1   4    17   35  −18    0.200

Group 8
The Better Fire Nation (TBFN) 1 0 0 4 1 1 0 4 0 11
Camwood (CAMW)                0 2 1 0 0 0 0 3 0  6

Equestrian States (EQUS)    0 0 4 0 1 0 3 0 0  8
Melatia (MELA)              0 0 0 0 1 0 0 1 0  2

Western Cuba (WCBA)         0 0 0 1 0 0 0 6 1  8
Branta Island (BISL)        0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 1  2


  Group 8                    Pld    W   L    RF   RA   RD    Win % 
1 Western Cuba                 5    4   1    27   14  +13    0.800
2 Melatia                      5    3   2    24   25   −1    0.600
3 Equestrian States            5    3   2    27   11  +16    0.600
4 Branta Island                5    2   3    21   30   −9    0.400
5 The Better Fire Nation       5    2   3    27   29   −2    0.400
6 Camwood                      5    1   4    25   42  −17    0.200

Group 9
Karditan (KARD)             1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0  1
JonathanAtopia (JONA)       1 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 X  2

Prostitutlia (PROS)         0 0 1 0 0 2 0 1 0  4
Saugeais (SAUG)             0 0 0 0 0 3 0 1 2  6

Beldonia (BELD)             0 0 0 4 0 0 2 2 0  8
Cosumar (COSM)              0 0 0 0 1 0 0 1 0  2


  Group 9                    Pld    W   L    RF   RA   RD    Win % 
1 JonathanAtopia               5    4   1    28   19   +9    0.800
2 Beldonia                     5    4   1    30   25   +5    0.800
3 Saugeais                     5    3   2    26   21   +5    0.600
4 Cosumar                      5    2   3    24   29   −5    0.400
5 Prostitutlia                 5    1   4    25   36  −11    0.200
6 Karditan                     5    1   4    24   27   −3    0.200

Group 10
Rustika (RUST)              0 0 0 0 0 1 1 0 2  4
New Montreal States (NMTS)  0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0  1

Licentiapacisterra (LICP)   0 4 0 0 3 0 0 0 0  7
Thatius (THAT)              0 2 1 0 0 2 0 0 0  5

Qazox (QAZX)                0 3 1 2 0 0 0 0 0  6
Falconfar (FALC)            2 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0  3


  Group 10                   Pld    W   L    RF   RA   RD    Win % 
1 Qazox                        5    5   0    22   11  +11    1.000
2 Rustika                      5    3   2    19   15   +4    0.600
3 Licentiapacisterra           5    2   3    22   26   −4    0.400
4 Thatius                      5    2   3    18   16   +2    0.400
5 Falconfar                    5    2   3    14   20   −6    0.400
6 New Montreal States          5    1   4    17   24   −7    0.200

by **Sakurakoku** » Fri Aug 17, 2012 8:54 pm

Drama Encore
More late-game heroics as Silver Wolves climb to top of Group 5

*photo: Wolves second baseman Genji Furukawa turning the game-ending double play that sealed Sakurakoku's late comeback.*

Sakurakoku  0 2 1 0 1 0 0 0 2 - 6 13 1
Torisakia   0 0 0 0 1 3 0 1 0 - 5 11 1

W – Kono (1-0)
L – *smudge*
Sv – Minamoto (2)

Partial Box Score:
Hitting

Hitters                  AB  R  H  RBI  BB  SO
Y. Katou, CF              3  2  2    0   2   0
M. Kaneko, 3B             5  2  2    1   0   0
H. Horie, DH              4  0  3    1   1   1
M. Yamagishi, RF          4  0  0    0   0   1
->(a) S. Yasuzumi, PH-RF  1  0  0    0   0   1
G. Furukawa, 2B           3  0  0    0   2   0
S. Takeda, SS             4  1  2    1   1   1
A. Kimihara, 1B           5  1  2    1   0   0
K. Kusao, LF              3  0  0    1   0   1
K. Suzuki, C              4  0  2    1   0   0

(a) Struck out for Yamagishi in 9th

Batting:
2B - Takeda in 2nd, Horie in 3rd, Horie in 5th, Takeda in 7th
HR - Kaneko in 3rd
Sacrifice hit - Kusao in 2nd
Reached on Error - Kusao in 6th
GIDP - Yamagishi in 1st, Yamagishi in 7th

Baserunning:
SB - Katou in 1st

Pitching

Pitchers                 IP  H  R  ER  BB  SO
K. Kunimoto             6.2  6  4   4   2   5
M. Hashimoto            1.0  3  1   1   0   1
T. Kono (W, 1-0)        0.1  0  0   0   0   1
N. Minamoto (S, 2)      1.0  2  0   0   0   0

Scoring Summary
Top 2nd: Kusao sacrifice flied out to left, Takeda scores, Kimihara to second. Sakurakoku, 1-0.
Top 2nd: Suzuki singled to right, Kimihara scored, Suzuki to second. Sakurakoku, 2-0.
Top 3rd: Kaneko homered to center. Sakurakoku, 3-0.
Top 5th: Horie doubled to right-center, Katou scored. Sakurakoku, 4-0.
Bottom 5th: *smudge* singled to left-center, *smudge* scored. Sakurakoku, 4-1.
Bottom 6th: *smudge* doubled to left-center, *smudge* scored. Sakurakoku, 4-2.
Bottom 6th: *smudge* homered to left, *smudge* scored. Tied, 4-4.
Bottom 8th: *smudge* doubled to center, *smudge* scored. Torisakia, 5-4.
Top 9th: Takeda walked, Katou scored, Kaneko to third, Furukawa to second. Tied, 5-5.
Top 9th: Kimihara singled to left, Kaneko scored, Furukawa to third, Takeda to second, Furukawa out at home. Sakurakoku, 6-5.

by **Qazox** » Fri Aug 17, 2012 9:13 pm

Qazox (QAZX)                0 3 1 2 0 0 0 0 0  6
Falconfar (FALC)            2 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0  3

Eagles start road trip off right, McDonald strikes out 10.

Ramon McDonald went 7 strong innings, striking out 10 and Greg Adams picked up his third save in 3 games as Qazox beat Falconfar 6-3 to finish the first half of qualifying 5-0. Thomas Zimmerman went 3-5 and drove in a pair to lead the way. Qazox will continue their trip with a visit to Thatius.

SCORING SUMMARY

Falconfar 1st: Maureane singled to left. Hedales doubled to right, Maureane to third. Hopkins struck out looking. Norman doubled to left, Maureane and Hedales scored. Von Helzburg grounded out to short. Delaclava struck out. 2 runs on 3 hits, 1 LOB. 2-0 Falconfar.

Qazox 2nd: Dodge singled to right. Zimmerman doubled to left-center, Dodge scored. Espinoza grounded out to second, Zimmerman to third. Lee singled to center, Zimmerman scored. Bryant singled to center, Lee to second. McDonald grounded into fielder's choice, (6-4), Lee to third, Bryant out at second, Lee scored, McDonald to second on Totter's throwing error. Hodgman flied out to right. 3 runs on 3 hits, 1 error, 1 LOB. 3-2 Qazox.

Qazox 3rd: Jimenez struck out. Hamilton doubled to right-center. Dodge flied out to left. Zimmerman singled to right-center, Hamilton scored. Espinoza struck out looking. 1 run on 2 hits, 1 LOB. 4-2 Qazox.

Qazox 4th: Lee singled to right. Bryant doubled to left-center, Lee to third. McDonald popped out to catcher. Hodgman singled to center, Lee and Bryant scored, Hodgman to second on throw. Jimenez grounded out to short. Hamilton struck out. 2 runs on 3 hits, 1 LOB. 6-2 Qazox.

Falconfar 4th: Totter doubled to left. <pinch-hitter: Buster batting for Myx>. Buster singled to right, Totter scored. Maureane struck out. Hedales grounded into double-play (4-6-3), Buster out at second. 1 run on 2 hits, 0 LOB. 6-3 Qazox.

by **Maklohi Vai** » Fri Aug 17, 2012 9:18 pm

Cavalo Nacio (CVNC) 6 0 0 4 0 0 0 2 0 12
Maklohi Vai (MAKV) 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 1 1 3
(OOC: Oy...)

Maklohi Vai lost its second game today, due to a drastic performance by starting pitcher Uwo. Taking the loss, he threw only 1 inning, giving up 6 earned runs on 3 walks, 3 hits including 2 home runs, and no strikeouts. Ru threw the next five innings, giving up 4 earned runs on 6 hits, 1 walk, and 2 strikeouts. Unrowai Lonma’ao threw the last three, giving up 2 earned runs on 5 hits and 1 walk, no strikeouts.

Maklohi Vai Scoring summary:
3rd:
Mae'ao hit a solo home run to left.

8th:
Mae'ao hit his second homer of the game, this time to left center.

9th:
With two outs, Wolo Rakinalmanai hit a double. Pinch hitter Tutai hit a single, but Rakinalmanai could only advance to third. Aputo Roma’ai followed up with a single to drive Rakinalmanai in.

A stats update:
HR: Mae'ao 4, Arnao 2, Ri'ino Ulnai 1, Aputo Roma'ai 1, Luimao Makai 1
RBI: Mae'ao 7, Aputo Roma'ai 4, Ri'ino Ulnai 3, Arnao 3, Koilani Ruputuo 1, Luimao Makai 1, Moalna'akai Lai 1

Commentators in Maklohi Vai have reached the general conclusion that the hitting will be decent enough for a elimination berth, but the pitching needs to improve.
Mae'ao also just passed 5 million followers on Kopai'i, the Vaian social networking site.

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