WORLD BASEBALL CLASSIC XXIV - LYCRABON

[Ko-oren]

From the department of useless facts - Ministry of Sports, Well-being and Culture

1. There's only three groups which do not have their highest ranked team as first place

2. Homelands our, Shadowbourne and Ko-oren are not the highest ranked teams that are in the lead: Homelands our is ranked second highest, Ko-oren is third highest and Shadowbourne is fifth/sixth (unranked)

3. Green seems to be a good flag color: most 4/10 countries have green on their flag predominantly. Another 2/10 have green somewhere in their flag. Another good color combination is black and white: 2/10 '1st' countries have a monochrome flag. Western Cuba and Homelands our defy all logic, vexillologily

4. There are only three countries left with a 4-0 record. On the other hand, there are five teams with a 0-4 record

5. The most equal group is group 7: all teams have a 2-2 record. The Ministry of Sports, Well-being and Culture advises national TV to first present this group in an engaging and interesting way before moving on to our own group

6. Ko-oren needs to focus on scoring more runs. We're not bad in that department, but it could be better

7. Defense is pretty good in comparison

8. We admit that we had to look up the spelling for vexillologily. We do not know if it is actually a word, but at least vexillology is.

9. No one at this department understands why this report had to be made: we're just over 25% of the qualification phase in.

10. We wanted to say that the last match of the first half of qualifying against Tidal Wake (6th) should be a victory, but we do not want to jinx it.

[Zwangzug]

Wow, things change quickly! Another victory and we're apparently tied for first!

As well as, um, tied for last.

Yep, all six teams in group seven are 2-2. Mediocrity at its finest. Although I guess it would then stop being mediocre...all right, I'm probably not demolishing the "dumb jock" stereotype at this rate.

So a look in at the bullpen. Good news is that Aminda is finally here! Okay, that came out wrong too. But it's just a relief to know that there isn't something seriously wrong with her. Tikva Penmadder says that she's missed lots of games like that too, it's just that nobody notices because she's only supposed to play at most every five days anyway. Although Aminda just kind of ignores her, and a lot of people, so it isn't like her presence has drastically altered the atmosphere.

None of us got to pitch today. Sawyer Abbiani went deep and then Mel Pyrans came back in for the eighth and ninth to finish it off. No trips to the mound necessary, and in fact, it was a very fast moving game. The other team didn't seem to have much of a bench to draw on and there weren't a lot of ad breaks. I had to wonder how their pitchers do it, because they don't look that tall.

Well, I was wondering a little too loud, because Boipelo nervously pulled me aside and began whispering that they might have been juiced. I told him of course they weren't, that would probably require them to be a lot taller than they actually are. I mean, they're really small. If anything, they just lied about their ages when they were younger so they could look more like prodigies. And then he started acting paranoid about what if they were corking their bats or filling them with aluminum or something invisible like that. I didn't even know that was a thing. And maybe it isn't, because when I asked how that was possible he started saying it would be like hiding a robot by putting clothes on it, as if there was some robot hiding around...I mean, where does he even get these ideas?

His response, and again I quote, "don't worry, you could always tell if it was a robot, because it would be clanky."

The Zebras, everyone! Moving on from...I actually didn't catch the name of this stadium, but I thought I heard someone referring to "Parks Department Field #2." Say this for the home crowd, they may be small, but they have great announcers.

[Birolika]

Taeshan               120 110 220 - 9                   
Birolika              001 111 110 - 6

AB	H	R	RBI	SO	BB	B
Freddy Bronx 	4	2	1	1	1	1	3
Jack Harlow	5	2	1	0	1	0	3
Peter Zanders	4	1	0	0	1	1	2
Daniel Winters	5	1	1	1	0	0	4
Reg Molton	4	1	0	1	1	1	1
James Chester	4	1	0	1	0	1	1
Tim Ocks	5	1	1	0	2	0	2
Ryan Helk	4	2	1	1	1	0	5
Brian Munster	4	1	1	1	1	0	4

		IP	H	R	BB	SO		
John Hock	6.1	11	7	3	4
Simon Polch	1.2	3	2	2	1
Alan Squash	1	0	0	1	2

Stats of the day: Most times struck out for Batters

1	Brian Munster	8
2	Reg Molton	7
3	Jack Harlow	6
3	Peter Zanders	6

As we can see from the stats Brian Munster shouldn't really be on the team. Firstly, he has a terrible average, secondly he also has a habit of striking out. However we seem to have no one better and either way we still lost to Taeshan. It could have gone the complete other way if Taeshan hadn't managed that 2 run 8th innings and if Tim Ocks could have buried the three runs in the final to tie it level.

It was a game with a slow start for us on home ground as two walks in the first innings failed to amount to anything and Taeshan managed to take a run in the first and followed it up with Jeff Zimmerman driving in Todd Addams and Kareem Mywane. It then took until the bottom of the third inning for Birolika to break into the game, both Freddy Bronx and Jack Harlow opened up the innings with a single and double respectably. Zanders and Winters looked like blowing it as the grounded and flew it out, however Molton managed to get Birolika on the scoring board driving in Bronx with a single. After this Birolika scored a run an innings all the way to the 8th inning. However Taeshan had kept up as they scored 6 runs in the 3rd through to 8th innings. This put things at 9-6 going into the ninth. Closer Squash got off to a shaky start walking the first batter, the next guy got the count to 3-2 and fouled it off about 7 times before he was finally caught. The next two were both then struck out and so began the bottom of the ninth with 4 runs to win. Zanders struck out and Winters flew out and it looked like they might go three in a row when Molton went 0-2, however he then took it back to get walked. Chester then managed to get walked and with two men on base a home run could draw it back for a tenth innings. Ocks stepped up to the plate and he smashed it high into left field, it looked like it might make it over the wall, but instead left fielder Todd Addams managed to take it up against the wall. With that Birolika ended their chances of pulling off an upset and probably their chances of taking the group.

Next we have West Guiana and they're highly ranked, although they're glued towards the bottom of the table. This could be our chance of going into the play-offs, just like we did in the ice hockey. However if we don't win we will probably crash and burn like the football team. That or we'll end up in the middle like a whole new kind of team.

[Torisakia]

So after 4 games, we're 5th in Group 4. Half of our group sucks, and that's not even the bad part.

We've lost to an un-ranked team, an un-ranked team dammit!

Not one team in our group is undefeated, The best team lost the other day, to a nation 46 ranks below them. Nobody can beat nobody, Hell, by the end of this tournament, there won't be a nation with more wins than losses.

Looking into our roster, Carlos is the only one looking good. The others look like they've never played a bat of baseball in their lives. If Carlos hadn't made Jason quit, we'd be having a better run right now. It's difficult to tell who the 2nd best player is. Two of our players are injured and probably won't be returning. That means we have 3 backups on the starting lineup. In Layman's terms, our season is screwed. Unless we get some gifted player from above, I don't see us winning more than 2 games.

No one but Carlos scored a run today. We haven't scored 3 consecutive runs in any innings this tournament. Only a few players got to pitch today, Eddie Mace pitched until the 6th and Adrian Pizzo finished the rest. Our pitching is pretty good. We've gotten 20 strikeouts so far, more than I ever expected. At least we're doing good in SOMETHING, otherwise I'd have to cut everyone from the team and hire the Yankees.

I called Jason earlier today and asked him to see if he would come back. He blatantly said "no" and told me that as long as Carlos is on the team, he wouldn't even think about coming back. In all honesty, Jason is better than Carlos. Carlos may be able to hit, catch, and pitch. But Jason is a better team player and had higher stats interleague than Carlos ever did. So I have to make a decision whether to cut Carlos and get Jason back, or keep Carlos. So next game might be the last time Carlos wears a Torisakia uniform. Carlos is nothing but a conceded douche who can't tell his ERA from his BA because he thinks he's so great. I just can't stand Carlos' attitude anymore, it's annoying the whole team, he keeps it up every single day, and it's driving me to murder.

Looking at our next opponent, they haven't won a game yet. That's good because maybe we'll be able to get a win. They've given up 44 runs so far, compared to our 30. This basically shows us that they have no defense, or they just can't throw the ball correctly.

The only thing good that we have besides pitchers is good radio and TV announcers, along with stadium announcers. As long as they don't butcher players' names publicly where everyone can hear them. Other than that, we have nothing good. Not yet...

BOX SCORE

Sakurakoku            100 122 021 - 9				
Torisakia             100 102 010 - 5

TOR (1-3)
SKR (3-1)

UP NEXT:
@ (UR)Unified Hyrule (0-4)

TV: TSPN
RADIO: 102.2 The RЏSH

[Lycrabon]

At the halfway mark cutoff......who has the inside track on a posteseason berth?

Group One

Ko-oren               100 111 100 - 5			
The Tidal Wake        002 000 09X - 11			
			
			
The Jahistic Unified  001 110 000 - 3			
Byfugland             300 320 10X - 9			
			
			
Pathogeria            000 200 400 - 6			
Saugeais              302 162 02X - 16

Group Two

Cyborg Holland        100 210 200 - 6			
Riyahda               011 000 010 - 3			
			
			
Kintratar             000 000 000 - 0			
The Kytler Peninsula  110 131 01X - 8			
			
			
Pugh                  000 000 000 - 0			
Yesopalitha           200 113 10X - 8

Group Three

Maklohi Vai           411 120 200 - 11			
Shadowbourne          801 010 02X - 12			
			
			
Kerblaekistan         000 010 601 - 8			
Karditan              200 212 000 - 7			
			
			
Free Swiss States     001 100 000 - 2			
Milchama              110 130 10X - 7

Group Four

Torisakia             100 411 000 - 7			
Unified Hyrule        300 020 010 - 6			
			
			
Branta Island         000 101 000 - 2			
Sakurakoku            100 122 00X - 6			
			
			
Ezryel                010 010 000 - 2			
Darmen                100 111 01X - 5

Group Five

Super-Llamaland       300 310 300 - 10			
STORMCHASE            203 100 000 - 6			
			
			
Mapletish             200 020 100 - 5			
THRILLEDGE            100 212 31X - 10			
			
			
Madsen                000 202 010 - 5			
Civil Citzenry        111 120 01X - 7

Group Six

Sicountimont          212 131 000 - 10			
Raxillion             001 000 010 - 2			
			
			
Allinlia              000 002 041 - 7			
New Montreal States   300 141 00X - 9			
			
			
Powersith             100 010 000 - 2			
Lycrabon              101 220 04X - 10

Group Seven

Equestrian States     102 110 000 01 - 6			
Weatherdon            002 020 100 00 - 5			
			
			
Backyard Sports       000 010 000 - 1			
Tyneala               300 110 03X - 8			
			
			
Lunar Republic Islan  200 001 000 - 3			
Zwangzug              302 210 00X - 8

Group Eight

Cosumar               111 210 020 - 8			
Slembana              000 001 020 - 3			
			
			
Westros               100 011 000 - 3			
Michael VII           200 111 00X - 5			
			
			
The Royal Kingdom of  000 010 000 - 1			
Western cuba          121 311 00X - 9

Group Nine

Free South Califas    220 110 000 - 6			
Zandistan             100 091 00X - 11			
			
			
Belshaw and Peveness  100 002 011 - 5			
Homelands our         220 310 00X - 8			
			
			
Pacificus             000 020 110 - 4			
Qazox                 121 113 01X - 10

Group Ten

Lymantia              102 821 300 - 17			
Wyztrkstan            001 210 010 - 5			
			
			
Birolika              000 000 000 - 0			
West Guiana           101 222 01X - 9			
			
			
Estope                100 001 020 - 4			
Taeshan               200 211 30X - 9

[Lymantatia]

A 17-5 Win? That's A Lot Of Runs Scored! How Unusual!
The Lymantatian baseball team defeated Wyztrkstan by 12 runs.

Run Scorers:
Inning 1: Mario Nicholas
Inning 2:
Inning 3: Laurent Gonzalez, Laurent Gonzalez, Eli Ŝiun
Inning 4: Mario Raymond, Mario Nicholas, Aleksandro Alija, Mario Nicholas, Mario Nicholas, Laurent Gonzalez, Mario Raymond, Mario Nicholas, Mario Nicholas, Teodoro Tankredo
Inning 5: Mario Nicholas, Laurent Gonzalez, Aleksandro Alija
Inning 6: Laurent Gonzalez
Inning 7: Laurent Gonzalez, Mario Nicholas, Mario Nicholas
Inning 8: Eli Ŝiun
Inning 9:

Black is Lymantatia
Green is Wyztrkstan

[Allinlia]

Opportunity Slipping Away
Allinlia's chances of surviving the group stage dwindling with yet another close loss

Allinlia              000 002 041 - 7			
New Montreal States   300 141 00X - 9

The three world ranked teams in the group are starting to create significant distance between themselves and the empire of Allinlia which has dropped to 1-4 with a close loss on the road to the New Montreal States (rank 20)

"We aren't finished yet but we have definitely not played ourselves into a good position thus far." said Manager Ron Gardner "Our team has been highly competitive in all but one of these games but we have definitely had a hard time doing what we need to do to close these games out, this is a sure sign of our inexperience playing in international competition against unfamiliar opponents."

New Montreal got to pitcher Eli Wells early with a 3 run first. Wells settled in blanking the opposing hitters in the 2nd and 3rd before allowing a run in 4th and getting sent away in 5th, ultimately allowing 6 runs in 5 innings.

"With the exception of Matt, its clear we have lost these close games due to mediocre performances from us starters, which is far below the standards we have set for ourselves." said Eli Wells. "I take full responsibility for what happened in this game."

The Allinlian hitters were held at bay for 5 innings before finally breaking through against New Montreal's starter in the 6th with a 2-run homer from Terrell Hunter. They would later give a serious threat of a comeback courtesy of a pair of RBIs from Cal Gordo, 1 from Conor Levins, and 1 from Terrell Hunter. Conan Marteen would smash a solo homer in the 9th but it wouldn't be enough as the Montreal relievers would survive the onslaught to maintain a 9-7 victory and putting New Montreal in an absolutely fantastic position of getting out of what has become an absolute meat grinder of a group.

BREAKING NEWS: Xavier Wilson found drunk and passed out after Sicoutemont Loss
We have just recieved reports that the night after Xavier Wilson's shockingly awful performance against Les Royales in Allinlia's WBC opener he was found by a fan passed out in an alley, highly intoxicated after apparently trying to drown his sorrows in the bars of Whiskey Row. The fan roused him and quickly called a cab to send the pitcher back to his hotel room. Wilson was apprently "beyond hammered" stumbling and mumbling incoherently about "inside sliders"

Ron Gardner stated that he was incredibly disappointed with Wilson's reaction to the loss and his post game behavior but said that he is part of the team and that he will get a chance to redeem himself in tomorrow's game.

"I'm not happy with how I behaved." said Wilson "Its an embarrassment to this WBC team and my own ball club, the Caoloon Bulls. This is the type of tabloid distraction that we just don't need right now." he then added "However this experience has humbled me greatly, I've done alot of soul searching in the days since that night and I think I am more than ready to take the mound again tomorrow. I have not been used to adversity in my short career, it was high time I faced reality and grew up, I think that ultimately what has happened so far has made me a stronger player and stronger person. I aim to prove it very soon."

"We have the utmost confidence in X." said Aiden Stairs "He's still a young guy but he'll prove himself to be the best pitcher there ever was. Mark it down."

Wilson will get his chance tomorrow, Ron Gardner has been steadfast that Wilson will not lose his critical spot at the head of the rotation. We hope that he sees something we don't. Allinlia's 1-4 start has quickly made every remaining game a must-win.

AESN PowerStats(tm)
Stairs: 2HR 6RBI
Marteen: 3HR 5RBI
Levins: 2HR 4RBI
Majuwitz 1HR 3RBI
Hunter 1HR 3RBI
Silver 0HR 3RBI
Grimes 0HR 3RBI
Gordo 0HR 3RBI
Reece 0HR 1RBI

[Sakurakoku]

Just Plugging Along
Kunimoto holds down Branta Island into 8th as Wolves keep pace with Darmen

*photo: Wolves third baseman Mami Kaneko taking a mighty swing on a pitch destined for the bleachers at Central Bay Stadium.*

Branta Island         000 101 000 - 2  8 0
Sakurakoku            100 122 00X - 6 10 1

Partial Box Score:
Hitting

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

Batting:
2B - Kimihara in 1st, Yamagishi in 4th, Takeda in 5th
HR - Kaneko in 6th
GIDP - Katou in 2nd

Baserunning: none

Fielding:
DP - Takeda/Furukawa/Kimihara in 3rd, Furukawa/Takeda/Kimihara in 6th
Outfield Assist - Uemura in 9th
E - Kunimoto in 6th

Pitching

Pitchers                 IP  H  R  ER  BB  SO
K. Kunimoto (W, 2-0)    7.1  7  2   1   2   5
H. Junni                1.2  1  0   0   0   2

Scoring Summary
Bottom 1st: Katou struck out. Kaneko singled to center. Horie struck out. Furukawa walked, Kaneko to second. Kimihara doubled to left, Kaneko scored, Furukawa to third. Yamagishi walked. Takeda flied out to center. Sakurakoku, 1-0.
Top 4th: Speziale flied out to left. Messana doubled to left. Serafini singled to right-center, Messana scored. Acquarone popped out to first. Adriatico struck out. Tied, 1-1.
Bottom 4th: Yamagishi doubled to left. Takeda popped out to second. Kusao walked. On wild pitch, Yamagishi to third, Kusao to second. Suzuki sacrifice flied out to center, Yamagishi scored. Katou flied out to right. Sakurakoku, 2-1.
Bottom 5th: Kaneko struck out. Horie walked. Furukawa singled to left-center, Horie to second. Kimihara struck out. Yamagishi singled to left-center, Horie scored, Furukawa to second. Takeda doubled to center, Furukawa scored, Yamagishi to third, Yamagishi out at home. Sakurakoku, 4-1.
Top 6th: Moretti singled to center. Speziale walked, Moretti to second. Messana ground into double play, second baseman Furukawa to shortstop Takeda to first baseman Kimihara, Speziale out at second, Messana out at first, Moretti to third. Serafini safe at first on error by pitcher Kunimoto, Moretti scored. Acquarone flied out to left. Sakurakoku, 4-2.
Bottom 6th: Kusao walked. Suzuki struck out, Kusao to second on passed ball. Katou grounded out to shortstop. Kaneko homered to left-center, Kusao scored. Horie struck out. Sakurakoku, 6-2.

[Qazox]

Eagles win first of homestand.

Marie Darby went 8 innings despite allowing 11 hits on the day, as Qazox improved to 3-2 at the halfway point with a 10-4 win over Pacificus today. Darby also had a single in her 1st at-bat, becoming just the fourth Qazoxian pitcher to win and get a hit in their debut game.

Up next, Qazox will host Zandistan.

Pacificus             000 020 110 -  4 11 0
Qazox                 121 113 01X - 10 19 0

SCORING SUMMARY

Qazox 1st: Hodgman singled to left. Hodgman stole 2nd. Jimenez grounded out to 2nd, Hodgman to third. Hamilton singled to center, Hodgman scored. Dodge flied out to left. Zimmerman struck out. 1 run on 2 hits, 1 LOB; 1-0 Qazox

Qazox 2nd: Espinoza doubled to center. Lee singled to right, Espinoza to third. Bryant singled to center, Espinoza scored, Lee to 2nd. Darby singled to left, Lee to third, Bryant to second. Hodgman grounded into double-play (6-4-3), Lee scored, Bryant to third, Darby out at 2nd. Jimenez walked. Hamilton flied out to center. 2 runs on 4 hits, 2 LOB; 3-0 Qazox

Qazox 3rd: Dodge 442ft HR to center, Dodge scored. Zimmerman flied out to left. Espinoza struck out. Lee struck out. 1 run on 1 hit, 0 LOB; 4-0 Qazox

Qazox 4th: Bryant doubled to left-center. Darby struck out. Hodgman singled to center, Bryant to third. Jimenez flied out to right, Bryant scored. Hamilton struck out. 1 run on 2 hits, 1 LOB; 5-0 Qazox

Pacificus 5th: SP#5 struck out. CF singled to left. 2B doubled to center, CF to third. 1B singled to right, CF and 2B scored, 1B to second on play. RF flied out to right. C grounded out to second. 2 runs on 4 hits, 2 LOB; 5-2 Qazox

Qazox 5th: Dodge flied out. Zimmerman 419ft HR to right, Zimmerman scored. <PITCHING CHANGE: RP#1 in for SP#5> Espinoza singled to right. Lee grounded into (5-4-3) double play, Espinoza out at second. 1 run on 2 hits, 0 LOB; 6-2 Qazox

Qazox 6th: Bryant singled to left. Darby sacrificed to third, Bryant to second. Hodgman doubled to left-center, Bryant scored. Jimenez singled to right, Hodgman scored. Hamilton singled to right, Jimenez to second. Dodge to first on fielder's choice. Jimenez to third, Hamilton out at second (5-4). Zimmerman singled to center, Jimenez scored. Espinoza struck out. 3 runs on 5 hits, 1 LOB; 9-2 Qazox

Pacificus 7th: CF doubled to right. 2B sacrificed to first, CF to third. 1B singled to left, CF scored. RF flied out to center. C grounded out to third. 1 run on 2 hits, 1 LOB; 9-3 Qazox

Pacificus 8th: LF 394ft HR to left. LF scored SS grounded out. 3B singled to right. <PINCH HITTER: INF#6 batting for RP#3> INF#6 walked, 3B to second. CF grounded into double play (5-3), 3B out at third. 1 run on 2 hits, 1 LOB; 9-4 Qazox

Qazox 8th: <PITCHING CHANGE: RP#4 in for RP#3> Hodgman doubled to right-center. Jimenez singled to right, Hodgman to third. Hamilton grounded into double play (4-6-3), Hodgman scored, Jimeneza out at second. Dodge struck out. 1 run on 2 hits, 0 LOB; 10-2 Qazox

[Maklohi Vai]

(OOC:This RP starts at the beginning of the WBC. Its most pertinent, RP worthy information starts now)

It had never been adapted, the old chant. The ancestors used it for prayers to the divine, but never for a secular purpose. But was this truly secular? Either way, the team had a tough time trying to find a priest who would perform the rites for the offering to Margaret. The father of Kolo Lahi had turned them down, as had the ones of Wakita and Totai. Rutupo'a and Wakali said no, and so did Tamolaki. No one of significance had accepted the offer. At last resort, there was always Urmakani's father, Nomolo Porukanai. He was always a bit of an oddball, but knew a good chance and a good prayer when he saw it. Yet he even took some time to think, arguing in his head:
"It is not to the divine. But it is for our team."
"A team! That is sport, not religion! But when they succeed, it benefits our country, and our people."
"It is an affront to the divine! But his glory is greater if his children succeed!"
And so it went. For three days, Porukanai remained in his house, contemplating his decision. He knew it was a make it or break it opportunity. Even if he did it right, there would be those who would shun him. If he did it wrong, well, he almost didn't want to think. He'd lose his job and most of his friends, and would be unable to gain them back. He would be an outcast in the only profession he knew.
But he watched the games. A loss against the Swiss States was demoralizing but did not push him. A win against Karditan, however, was not mollifying. The loss against Milchama was bad. But then came Shadowbourne. As Nomolo watched the bottom of the first, he saw how hopeless the team was. 8 runs, and 3 errors to boot. It was too much for him to bear. Nomolo called the cell of Okao Lomnai, the coach, who normally wouldn't have picked up, but when seeing the number did so immediately.
"Hello?"
"Coach Lomnai, this is Nomolo Porukanai. I have decided to help your team."
"Thank you for your thought, father. It means a great deal to us."
"It is not for your benefit. It is for the people. They rely, despite its irrationality, on your success for their happiness. My first rule, as a follower of the divine, is to improve the people's lives through him. I see this the fitting way."
"I understand this has been a difficult decision for you to make. I appreciate your thought."
"No decision involving the divine requires little thought. Now if you will excuse me, I need to prepare."
"Thank you for your time, father."
*click*

The night of the Shadowbourne game, the rubber chickens arrived. Lomnai wondered if 10,000 was necessary, but the priest had been adamant- "If we are to do this, we are to do this correctly." Lomnai had gathered his team and tole them of the ceremony. Some of the younger ones were apprehensious of the plan, but the veterans calmed them down. "You only sacrifice to Margaret when you truly need her help. You know we need it."

As dictated by lore, the ceremony began at midnight. Nomolo performed the intonations with vigor, wishing and hoping it would work.

"MARGARET! MARGARET, YE OF THE RANDOM NUMBER!
TAKE WITH YOUR GIVING SPIRIT THIS OFFERING!
These fake fowl are for your enjoyment only, and no other.
They are to be your pleasure, and your folly.
We bring them with the greatest respect for your power, and the greatest appreciation for your talent."

It was at this point that Nomolo began to quiver. He could feel his grandfather staring down on him, his conservative might and power shunning his grandson's ignorant, disrespectful liberalism. He would pay. But it was now that Nomolo had anticipated himself most likely to break, and had prepared himself. He reached a fever pitch.

"MARGARET, WE BOW BEFORE YOU IN ETERNAL SERVITUDE. WE SERVE NO OTHER. WE SERVE ONLY YOUR CAUSE AND YOUR PURPOSE. WE ASK FOR YOUR PERMISSION OF SUCCESS ON THIS DARK DAY OF THIS TOURNAMENT. YOU, THE ALL POWERFUL, ARE THE ONLY ONE WHO CAN SAVE US. MARGARET, WE MAKE THIS SACRIFICE TO YOU FOR YOU ONLY. MAY YOUR DIVINE JUDGMENT PERMIT US TO SUCCEED. WE WILL BE ETERNALLY GRATEFUL."

Nomolo dropped to the ground in a deep sweat. "AAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHH!!!!" It was part relief, part pure fear of what would come next. If the team won, he would gain credit in his community. If they lost, he would forever be an outcast. Only Margaret would decide that.







(OOC: Runscorers, etc., are added onto this RP below, mainly for statistical purposes)

Maklohi Vai           411 120 200 - 11			
Shadowbourne          801 010 02X - 12

Maklohi Vai Scoring Summary
1st: After a double by Roma'ai to lead off, Laina and Uilnai drew walks, loading the bases. Mae'ao hit a monster home run for a grand slam, sending the Vaian fans into a frenzy.
2nd: Arnao hit a double with one out. Moalna’akai Lai then hit a single to drive him in.
3rd: With two outs, Ri'ino Uilnai hit a double to left. Mae'ao drove him in with a triple down the right field line.
4th: Wolo Rakinalmanai hit a home run to lead off the inning.
5th: Ri'ino Uilnai led off with a single. Mae'ao followed with a blast to left that just cleared the wall, sending both men in.
7th: Following a pattern of the day, Uilnai hit a double, with Mae'ao then hitting a two run shot to drive both of them in.

Stat update:
HR: Mae'ao 9, Koilani Ruputuo 1, Moalna’akai Lai 1, Ri'ino Ulnai 1, Iao Laina 1, Wolo Rakinalmanai 1
RBI: Mae'ao 21, Aputo Roma'ai 3, Moalna’akai Lai 3, Wolo Rakinalmanai 3, Koilani Ruputuo 1, Iao Laina 1, Ri'ino Ulnai 1

[New West Guiana]

Couple of wins in a row
Liz Sith

Hallelujah! Hallelujah! Two wins in a row! It's an early Christmas miracle, the Redhawk have now won two..hear that two in a row! I'm not joking this is some real serious business, since starting 0-3 not much joy to sign about in ole' WG because since anyone who knows the average West Guiana fan they give up really fast when their team starts to go down hill. But hey lets just give some late thanks to Ray Luse who made a game changing decision that really did impact the game...he benched Ray Lewis the 37 year old who has been starting the nations baseball games since World Baseball Classic 21, twelve years ago, West Guiana's first appreance. At WBC 21 he was only 25, but his aged has started to hurt the team.

So the rookie 19 year old Tom Lunds, started for the Redhawks and by games end he looked somking! Up until the eight inning he had been having a perfect game, until he hit Martin Belton on the shoulder. However his team mates bailed him out, for the rest of the game. Afterwards Luse was asked on Luds performance, "Well one thing is for sure the next game he'll be our starter, but..he needs more practice on how to stay in the game. But he's a rookie I can't expect him to learn everything in one game."

Know I must say this as a woman typing this up, Tom Luds is SMOKING HOT! No seriously the muscles coming from him, whoa I though I was going to faint, I know i'm supposed to be keeping this all professional but hey I'm still single at age 29! (shit I gave away my age). Okay, okay i'm done giving my self some sexual pleasure.

So for game six, I know we REALLY need to win all these games, and we NEED to beat Taeshan, but first game first we play at home against Estope the team that we lost to, by I think one run. And if there is any new readers out there, you've got to hand it to me when I first started to report on baseball which was World Baseball Classic 21, I knew next to nothing now...well hey I can challenge some of you about who knows what. But serisouly no one from the following countries challenge me I'll sure to lose: Saugeais, The Kytler Peninsula, Milchama, Sakurakoku, Darmen, Civil Citzenry, Zwangzug, Michael VII, Western cuba, and Qazox. See that, tha's only ten..TEN, the other forty nine fire away!

[Estope]

In a tough game against a challenging world ranked opponent, Estope came up just short. The loss to #5 Taeshan was seeming an embarrassing blowout loss but the was lots of promise showing through this young team. Estope fought to the end and played spectacular throughout. But once again the pitching staff came up short. The offense didn't play badly. In fact they played just as good as in all their previous games. Ideally Coach Felipe Sweigart would like 4 runs to be enough to win a game but throughout this tournament the scores have been abnormally high. Estope took an early lead but couldn't hold on against a very talented Taeshan team. Taeshan just had too many offensive weapons and strong pitchers for Estope to hang in very long. The starting pitcher for Estope was Cedric Mothershed who shined in his first start of the tournament but today he pitched very poorly and allowed all 9 runs. The bullpen did much better and allowed no runs but they were put in too late for any good to come from it. Sweigart said in his post game interviews that he regrets not changing pitchers sooner. This loss still leaves Estope in second in the group but makes the road much more challenging. Estope has only a one game lead over all of the other four group members so they will need to perform very well and only drop probably one or two more games if they want to advance. Tomorrow Estope will host Lymantatia. Estope won the first encounter on the road but Lymantatia is coming off a huge 17-5 victory. They are playing their best ball right now so Estope will have to come out focused and ready to play. Garrett Masser will start even though he performed badly in his first start. The coaches feel confident he will come out rested and ready to go.

Estope             100 001 020 - 4			
#5 Taeshan         200 211 30X - 9

EST (3-2) TAE (4-1)

Hitters                  AB  R  H  RBI   BB   SO
Alex Avez SS             5   1  2    0    0    1
Max Meister LF           4   0  2    0    1    1
Cory Keys 1B             3   0  1    1    2    1
Jessie Driggers RF       5   0  1    0    0    2
Henry Fowler CF          5   1  2    0    0    0
Fabio Fernandez 3B       5   1  2    0    0    0
Austin Forde 2B          4   0  2    2    0    0
Bryant Bolman DH         3   0  1    0    1    1
James Campella C         4   1  1    1    0    1

Batting:
2B - Keys - 1st
     Bolman - 2nd
     Fowler - 8th
     Forde - 8th
       
3B - None

HR - Campella - 6th

SAC - None

Baserunning:
SB - Driggers - 3rd
     Driggers - 7th

CS - None

Fielding:
E - None
A - Forde - 6
    Avez - 4
    Fernandez - 4     

Pitching
Pitchers            IP   H  R  ER  BB  SO
Cedric Mothershed   6.1  14  9   9   8   4
     (L, 1-1)
Jonathon Nitka      1.2  0  0   0   0   3

Scoring Summary
Top 1st: Keys doubled, Avez scored. Estope, 1-0.
Bottom 1st: Addams singled, Fisher scored. Tied, 1-1.
Bottom 1st: Lewis singled, Mywane scored. Taeshan, 2-1.
Bottom 4th: Zimmerman hit two run homerun, Bleacher scored. Taeshan, 4-1.
Bottom 5th: Wasaver doubled, Addams scored. Taeshan, 5-1
Top 6th: Campella hit solo home run. Taeshan, 5-2.
Bottom 6th: Mywane doulbed, Addams, Fisher scored. Taeshan, 7-2.
Bottom 7th: Childs singled, Lewis scored. Taeshan, 8-2.
Bottom 7th: Zimmerman singled, Childs scored. Taeshan, 9-2.
Top 8th: Forde doubled, Fernandez, Fowler scored. Taeshan, 9-4

Unofficial Group Table

Group 10            W   L    RF   RA   RD
1 Taeshan (5)	    4   1    33   19   +14
2 Estope	    3   2    24   31   −7
3 West Guiana (14)  2   3    26   19   +7
4 Lymantatia (41)   2   3    34   27   +7
5 Birolika	    2   3    28   38   -10
6 Wyztrkstan	    2   3    26   37   -11

[Zwangzug]

Halfway through, and we have a winning record, which is as much as you can say for anyone in this group.

I'll take it. In the league I know I'm only pitching every five days so we could lose eighty percent of the time and I could still be the best. Look at Csaba--he's great despite the Flash struggling.

Okay, he wasn't actually great, but the point stands. Here, though, I can be called upon at any time, I have to be ready. Except today, I was mostly resting up for the second half, but the point...stands.

The novelty of playing in Spenson is beginning to wear off. Boipelo has already taken the whole "upside-down city" thing in stride, and was apparently doing some shopping for Christmas presents in the low stores. Cuing Danny raging about the excesses of capitalism. Boipelo, quite reasonably, pointed out that since Danny doesn't observe Christmas anyway it's no skin off his back. Danny retorted that Boipelo was just a special case because of being, like, a star athlete with a little more money to throw around. Boipelo reminded Danny that he was one to talk, and if it would make him feel better he'd hold off on sending gifts until Epiphany (which, of course, is January 6).

I'd like to think that I said something smart and broke it up, but actually, it was Peter who separated them. Peter is a rather tall man and fairly slender for his height, but once he sets out in search of sunflower seeds, the bullpen becomes an impassable place until he has secured a sufficiently large tub to spit them into. So that distracted everyone long enough to shut them up. It also definitely distracted Hiroto, who was trying to keep his own scorecard and kept having his line of sight interrupted by people passing by. He is far shorter than Peter, and even Tikva outheights him. Aminda is the smallest of our class, although despite the health concerns she's really not what you'd call "frail."

I can just tell Marjorie wants her to tie up her hair like Jen, but she thinks the entire concept of Aminda's hair is so frivolous that it would be beneath her to bring it up. Aminda, meanwhile, is completely oblivious to this entire issue, so on we go.

[Milchama]

"You know what I hate"

"What?"

"Margaret worship"

"How could you? We're the ones who started it"

"True"

"But people do it all wrong"

"Yeah"

"The point is to make the offering in either Maori or Hebrew or some combination of the above"

"Yeah nobody actually makes it in English"

"Well maybe there was some English at the end"

"Maybe but it was rare"

"Yeah I guess"

"So why do other fans always miss that part?"

"Probably because we no longer do it publicly"

"Well it was a pagan ritual"

"Yeah, I'm shocked it got so big. I mean it was a pagan ritual"

"I just said that"

"I'm aware, I just felt like it was worth repeating"

"Ok"

"Still it always annoys me"

"See you did the same thing, and you also felt that it was worth repeating"

"Fair"

"Ok then that's my point"

"Anyway, how about the Warriors?"

"Well they won"

"Good"

"Yeah it's against a team that was above them also"

"Oh that's good"

"Does that mean we're in second?"

"I think so"

"Wonderful"

"Yeah, that's qualifying position"

"And we should be able to beat Shadowbourne"

"Yeah the Shadowcats suck"

"Well they beat us"

"But they were lucky"

"Yeah and the press wrote a weird report about it"

"Really weird actually"

"Yeah, I hope they don't something like that again"

"Actually I hope they do, I loved the metaphors"

"I like metafives only"

*Smack*

"You deserved that, that was a terrible pun"

"Fair"

"Well it doesn't matter because Milchama can now qualify for the playoffs"

"And then it's a whole new ball game"

"Exactly"

"Let's go out and grab it"

"Come on You Warriors!"

"Let's Go Milchama!"

[Kerblaekistan]

Mike - "Welcome to SportCourt! Whats going on in Kerblaekistan's wide world of sports, the minute it happens! Brought to you by SkyTrek, the future of air travel and official airline of the PLB(Pro League Baseball)."

Garrett - *introduces self*

Mike - *introduces self*

Garrett - "What an amazing and close game!"

Mike - "I'll say. It followed an amazing pattern too."

Garrett - "Indeed. Whenever Kerblaekistan scored in the top, Karditan scored in the bottom."

Mike - "That is, until the 9th. Kerblaekistan's James Bola was the DH today as Marty Brown was injured in a minor car accident last night. The unproven rookie shot one out of the park, and when I say out of the park, I mean WAY out of the park. By far the best performance of anyone on the team so far in the tournament. The bottom was quick and uneventful, no need to ask."

Garrett - "In an interview with Emmett McFly, the manager of the Kerblaekistan Wolves, he stated James was originally just temporary, but due to his performance tonight, Bola will be awarded another game to see if he gets to stay in."

Mike - "I sure hope he stays in. Its always good to see a rookie on the map. The wolves will also need a replacement soon, as Marty Brown is aging greatly."

Garrett - "Agreed, and now to Heather for the pigskin highlights. Heather?"...

(OOC: anyone get the names? )

[Powersith]

Playoff Hopes and Opportunities Going Out of Grasp

After going 2-2, our Powersith Baseball Giants were blown out 10-2 against Lycrabon. Our pitcher Lei Wingo had let up 6 runs before he was relieved. However the relief let in 4 runs in the bottom in the 8th.

"What the hell guys!" yelled the manager in the locker room. "Our playoff opportunities are slipping down the drain now." You better wake the f*** up and do your job. You better push yourselves 120% tonight. I'm not the only one counting on you, the whole nation is."

At the half way point Powersith is still in 4th place with a 2-3 record, 2 games behind 1st place.

Today at practice, everyone was pushed to the limits as our players now know what is at stake here in group play. After being asked about going in tonight's game catcher Mendez Wilson said, "We are going in 120%, everything hangs in the balance here. However, fate will decide on how we play, and of course we are going to need a few miracles.

Starting tonight will be Mentov Rislo.

Pitcher's update:
Mentov Rislo - 42 - L - L #1 Record: 0-0 5.0 ERA
Willie Ways - 52 - L - L- #22 Record: 0-1 9.0 ERA
Willie Ways Jr. - 34 - R - R #12 Record: 1-0 3.0 ERA
Willie Ways III - 16 - L - L # 33 Record: 1-0 0.0 ERA
Lei Wingo - 32 - L - L #13 Record: 0-0 6.0 ERA
Closers :
Joseph Wasco - 33 - L - L #2 Saves: 1
Jermey Les - 21 - R - R- #3
Relief:
Kivnov Reknov - 22 - R - R #5 Record: 0-1 1.0 ERA
Nino Rodriguesz- 27 - L - L #7 Record: 0-1 4.0 ERA
Michael Mendez - Age 40 - L - L #10

[Free South Califas]

Qazox                 202 210 020 - 9
Zandistan             000 000 000 - 0
QAZ (1-0)  ZAN (0-1)

Homelands our         100 110 002 - 5
Pacificus             011 201 10X - 6
PAC (1-0)  HOM (0-1)

Free South Califas    100 121 102 - 8
Belshaw and Pevenessy 000 021 030 - 6
FSC (1-0)  BAP (0-1)
Zandistan             140 000 001 - 6			
Belshaw and Peveness  000 001 010 - 2			
			
			
Pacificus             002 071 200 00 - 12			
Free South Califas    204 110 040 01 - 13			
			
			
Qazox                 202 111 100 - 8			
Homelands our         009 222 00X - 15
Homelands our         600 210 002 - 11			
Zandistan             101 113 001 - 8			
			
			
Free South Califas    001 100 000 - 2			
Qazox                 103 125 01X - 13			
			
			
Belshaw and Peveness  100 000 032 01 - 7			
Pacificus             111 011 100 00 - 6[spoiler=MD4]Zandistan             200 010 200 - 5			
Pacificus             000 000 130 - 4			
			
			
Qazox                 100 212 000 - 6			
Belshaw and Peveness  201 010 204 - 10			
			
			
Homelands our         100 110 020 - 5			
Free South Califas    000 000 000 - 0
Free South Califas    220 110 000 - 6			
Zandistan             100 091 00X - 11			
			
			
Belshaw and Peveness  100 002 011 - 5			
Homelands our         220 310 00X - 8			
			
			
Pacificus             000 020 110 - 4			
Qazox                 121 113 01X - 10

. Group 9                	W L RF RA  RD
1 Homelands our (19)    	4 1 44 27 +17
2 Qazox (11)                 	3 2 46 31 +15
  Zandistan                	3 2 30 32  -2
4 Belshaw and Pevenessy    	2 3 30 34  −3
  Free So. Califas (34) 	2 3 29 47 −18
6 Pacificus                	1 4 32 40  −8

With such a disparity between the second and third ranked teams in Group 9, the Harvest Mice were expected to do poorly against Qazox and Homelands our, and they have. Even going 2-1 against the unranked teams has put them in a bit of a bind at the halfway point in the group stage, though. If both of the top sides repeat their performance, even going 3-0 against the unranked nations won’t be good enough. The Califan starting rotation has been uncharacteristically porous, while the lineup has struggled to support them with the bat or the glove. The bullpen is the lone non-disappointment in WBC 24 for the Mice, even after giving up five runs to a Qazox team that was already deep into a rout. At this point, it's definitely Homelands our's group to win, subject to a strong challenge from Qazox.

With the Harvest Mice in crisis, a meeting of the Baseball Assembly has been called to discuss its predicament, debate possible and politically viable solutions, and publish a diverse range of opinions regarding the way forward, before arranging another meeting where binding initiatives can be voted on in-person and online.

Thus far, BA polling has shown the following proposals to be popular enough to theoretically achieve quorum in that future meeting:

• Hire a dedicated manager
• Shop Federal Team players out to highly-ranked international leagues
• Host invitational tournaments in the future to see more of international strategies and prepare better

Others are hotly debated, and are sure to be put to the test at the meeting.

[Lunar Republic Isands]

Slipping Away

(From the Lunar Chronicle)

The LRI baseball team loses again 8-3 to Zwagzug. Advancing is a no but hopes have not been given up after being eliminated. "We learn, we can overcome in the next tournament. We came in and made some close games, we never played a bad game until today. We were in almost all of our games. We almost defeated Equestrian States, a very decent baseball team. I'm very proud of this team." Coach Dan McDonell said. "I'm not mad at all just dissapointed, you know, you come in, you're pumped up, excited but sometimes it just doesn't turn out that way and that's ok. We'll get 'em in the next WBC." Left Fielder Isaiah Howes said. "We were great, and we can get better, sometimes you don't come up big when you need to." Pitcher Zach Pitts said. It's dissapointing, but high spirits come to the future of this baseball team.

[Shadowbourne]

Below is the most-clicked on headline from Shadowbourne's most popular sports website, snsn.sdb, from 24-November, 2012.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Shadowbourne Emerges Victorious in Tough Win
By: Jacques Kov | SNSN
24-November, 2012


Kamanakai Oa'a Pani Stadium, the home field of the Maklohi Vai baseball team and site of yesterday's game.

Shadowbourne's pulled out another tight win in a 12 -11 offensive battle with WBC powerhouse Maklohi Vai. The game started out poorly for Shadowbpurne, as Maklohi Vai scored 4 runs in the first inning. However, Shadowbourne answered with 8 runs in the bottom of the inning, and continued to score throughout the rest of the game. Emerging star shortstop Achmed Kronbeg was the team's driving force once again, hiiting for two triples and stealing third to spark a two out rally in the first that accounted for 3 of the inning's 8 runs. Starter Zola Charifi struggled to shut down the powerful Vaian offense. However, the bullpen once again was the team's saving grace, twice saving the team from bases-loaded situations with less than two outs. Bournean Manager Rasmus Ramadan was thrilled with his team's performance, but stressed the need for their pitching to improve, saying, "We will not be able to advance if our starters don't clean it up." The team takes the field once again tonight against Milchama. Emmett Costa will start on the mound for Shadowbourne. The game will be televised live on SNSN, and will be available for streaming on snsn.sdb and on our mobile app.

284,024 people like this | 199,645 people tweeted this | 8 people +1'd this

2 Comments

coolguywithabeer12 - 11 up | 1 down
bring on milchama!!!

poptart234 - 8 up | 0 down
great effort by the team last nite. you can do it guys!

[Torisakia]

Even though our playoff hopes are gone, we still had a petty good win today.

Adrian made a game-saving catch deep right-field to seal the win for us. At least we won. Hell, I'm just happy that we scored something.

I decided not to cut Carlos. I might bring Jason in later in the tournament depending on how it plays out. If we make it to the playoffs, Carlos is gone, Jason is in. I talked to him earlier today and told him that I kept Carlos out for most of the game for "game plan reasons". Carlos only played outfield for 2 innings and only batted 3 times. He had just a few hits, but only 1 run. He hasn't been acting so conceded since then so I might just do this every game and see if it helps. It might just get Jason to come back.

GM called me today and told me that if we don't get at least 3 more wins by the end of this tournament, I'm done. All I can do is hope that our team can pull through the next few games. Unless Carlos gets injured or has an "accident", Jason won't come back. But like I said, there is hope for me and the team, but most important, me. The rest of the team seems to be improving. Earlier at practice, almost everyone got 15+ hits in the batting cages. It's great to see that our team is improving and that brings hope to the season.

Talking about our next game, we come back home to play 49th ranked Branta Island. We beat them the first time around, but they have improved. However, home-field advantage should give us the edge to win. I will go with the same "game plan" as last time and not play carlos so much, since our team is still improving. I'll be damned if we win out this half of the tournament. But it's possible, nothing is impossible. If we win out, It'll be great for the nation, and my paycheck. But that doesn't matter, my paycheck means more. Our savior will help us pull through today.

BOX SCORE

Torisakia             100 411 000 - 7			
Unified Hyrule        300 020 010 - 6	

TOR (2-3)
UHR (0-5)

UP NEXT:
Vs. (49) Branta Island (2-3)

TV: TSPN
RADIO: 102.2 The RЏSH

[Yesopalitha]

At the halfway point of the group stage in this World Baseball Classic, the Yesopalitha Assassins are looking mighty sharp.

Victor Van Cruz pitched a complete game three-hitter as Valentin Sorin homered again to lead the Assassins to a 8-0 thrashing of unranked Pugh. The team is undefeated and looks poised to make the trip to Lycrabon with no drama in this stage.

"The bullpen is our greatest problem," admitted Manager DeMarco, "But since we gave them a rest today thanks to Van Cruz's masterpiece, hopefully they'll be ready next time around. We seem to be playing great ball and great defense, but we can bet better."

With Sorin and Smathers hitting the ball like it's stationary, the Assassins' hitting has improved considerably since the first couple times they have been at the Classic, and it is showing.

"We cannot slow down now," stated Van Cruz, "After Riyahda, The Kytler Peninsulae and Cyborg Holland will both be waiting for us to slip. We cannot allow that to happen."

At current form, this team won't.

[Lycrabon]

Match six cutoff......has anyone clinched or been eliminated??


Just a heads up, next standings will be tomorrow. Though the ones that are close either way already know that.

Group One

The Tidal Wake        000 000 000 - 0			
Saugeais              100 130 20X - 7			
			
			
Pathogeria            002 020 020 - 6			
Byfugland             201 312 00X - 9			
			
			
The Jahistic Unified  000 101 011 - 4			
Ko-oren               400 010 00X - 5

Group Two

Riyahda               000 001 000 - 1			
Yesopalitha           111 111 00X - 6			
			
			
Pugh                  010 110 000 - 3			
The Kytler Peninsula  100 131 00X - 6			
			
			
Kintratar             000 101 012 02 - 7			
Cyborg Holland        100 112 000 00 - 5

Group Three

Shadowbourne          001 000 000 - 1			
Milchama              102 110 00X - 5			
			
			
Free Swiss States     130 000 200 - 6			
Karditan              132 112 11X - 12			
			
			
Kerblaekistan         011 000 051 - 8			
Maklohi Vai           331 310 00X - 11

Group Four

Unified Hyrule        010 001 200 - 4			
Darmen                200 130 00X - 6			
			
			
Ezryel                000 202 000 - 4			
Sakurakoku            510 283 00X - 19			
			
			
Branta Island         001 001 010 - 3			
Torisakia             100 132 00X - 7

Group Five

STORMCHASE            000 140 000 - 5			
Civil Citzenry        200 131 00X - 7			
			
			
Madsen                100 200 000 - 3			
THRILLEDGE            111 111 00X - 6			
			
			
Mapletish             300 001 000 - 4			
Super-Llamaland       201 220 00X - 7

Group Six

Raxillion             001 021 002 - 6			
Lycrabon              101 130 01X - 7			
			
			
Powersith             003 020 101 - 7			
New Montreal States   121 121 00X - 8			
			
			
Allinlia              002 001 000 - 3			
Sicountimont          200 230 00X - 7

Group Seven

Weatherdon            000 100 024 - 7			
Zwangzug              101 110 000 - 4			
			
			
Lunar Republic Islan  101 001 010 - 4			
Tyneala               200 132 00X - 8			
			
			
Backyard Sports       200 000 200 - 4			
Equestrian States     110 111 00X - 5

Group Eight

Slembana              011 210 000 - 5			
Western cuba          101 221 02X - 9			
			
			
The Royal Kingdom of  011 100 110 0 - 5			
Michael VII           101 110 001 2 - 7			
			
			
Westros               102 010 000 - 4			
Cosumar               103 111 01X - 8

Group Nine

Zandistan             001 100 000 - 2			
Qazox                 100 211 00X - 5			
			
			
Pacificus             000 101 001 - 3			
Homelands our         201 111 00X - 6			
			
			
Belshaw and Peveness  022 000 000 - 4			
Free South Califas    100 120 10X - 5

Group Ten

Wyztrkstan            120 000 020 - 5			
Taeshan               100 120 000 - 4			
			
			
Estope                002 090 000 - 11			
West Guiana           103 110 000 - 6			
			
			
Birolika              000 010 020 - 3			
Lymantia              100 230 00X - 6

[Qazox]

Eagles win 2 in a row.

While not as dominant as his first outing against them, most likely due to an extra day off, Ramon McDonald improved to 2-0 this WBC as Qazox beat Zandistan 5-2. Due to a mix-up when the two teams met in Zandistan, the DH was used in this game. The DH was used accidently in Zandistan, and Qazox figured it would only be fair to reciprocate the advantage of an extra batter.

Up next, Qazox' 3 game homestand will end against group leaders Homelands our. A win there and Qazox controls their destiny for the group title, a loss and Homelands our will all but have the group title locked up.

Zandistan             001 100 000 - 2  5 0
Qazox                 100 211 00X - 5 10 2

SCORING SUMMARY

Qazox 1st: Hodgman lined out to third. Jimenez inside-the-park HR to right-center. Hamilton struck out. Dodge flied out to left. 1 run on 1 hit, 0 LOB; 1-0 Qazox

Zandistan 3rd: Sander doubled to center. Q doubled to left, Sander scored. Couch struck out. Miglotti grounded out to first, Q to third. Williams grounded out to third. 1 run on 2 hits, 1 LOB; 1-1

Zandistan 4th: Vardell singled to right. Shedemik reached on Dodge fielding error, Vardell to second. Roque Carlitos flied out to center. Sander reached on Dodge throwing error, Vardell scored, Shedemik to third, Sander to second on play. Q struck out. Couch grounded out to short. 1 run on 1 hit, 2 errors, 2 LOB; 2-1 Zandistan

Qazox 4th: Jimenez walked. Hamilton singled to center, Jimenez to second. Dodge struck out. Zimmerman doubled to center, Jimenez scored, Hamilton to third. Espinoza grounded out to short, Hamilton scored. Santos struck out. 2 runs on 3 hits, 2 LOB; 3-2 Qazox

Qazox 5th: Lee flied out to left. Bryant doubled to right-center. Hodgman singled to third, Bryant to third. Jimenez flied out to left, Bryant scored. Hamilton flied out to right. 1 run on 2 hits, 1 LOB; 4-2 Qazox

Qazox 6th: Dodge 412ft HR to right-center, Dodge scored. Zimmerman struck out. Espinoza struck out looking. Santos lined out to third. 1 run on 1 hit, 1 LOB; 5-2 Qazox

[Sakurakoku]

Party Animals
Wolves celebrate 100th WBC match with 19-run explosion against Ezryel

Ezryel                000 202 000 -  4 10 2
Sakurakoku            510 283 00X - 19 22 1

W - Yoshino (1-1)
L - *smudge*

Partial Box Score:
Hitting

Hitters                  AB  R  H  RBI  BB  SO
Y. Katou, CF              6  2  3    3   1   0
M. Kaneko, 3B             6  0  1    1   0   1
-> M. Dojima, 3B          1  0  0    0   0   1
H. Horie, DH              6  2  1    0   0   1
G. Furukawa, 2B           6  4  3    1   0   0
A. Kimihara, 1B           4  3  3    1   1   1
M. Yamagishi, RF          4  3  2    5   1   0
-> A. Uemura, RF          1  0  0    0   0   0
S. Takeda, SS             6  3  5    7   0   0
K. Kusao, LF              5  1  3    1   1   0
K. Suzuki, C              3  1  1    0   2   1

Batting:
2B - Kimihara in 2nd, Furukawa in 4th, Kimihara in 4th, Furukawa in 5th, Katou in 5th, Kaneko in 5th
3B - Takeda in 5th
HR - Yamagishi in 1st, Takeda in 1st, Katou in 5th, Takeda in 6th

Baserunning: 

Fielding:
DP - Takeda/Furukawa/Kimihara in 9th
E - Takeda in 6th

Pitching

Pitchers                 IP  H  R  ER  BB  SO
S. Yoshino (W, 1-1)     6.0  7  4   4   2   5
S. Miyanohara           2.0  1  0   0   1   2
T. Kono                 1.0  2  0   0   0   0

Scoring Summary
Bottom 1st: Katou grounded out to second. Kaneko struck out. Horie safe at first on fielding error by first baseman *smudge*. Furukawa singled to left, Horie to second. Kimihara walked, Horie to third, Furukawa to second. Yamagishi homered to center, Horie scored, Furukawa scored, Kimihara scored. Takeda homered to left. Kusao singled to left. Suzuki walked, Kusao to second. Katou popped out to short. Sakurakoku, 5-0.
Bottom 2nd: Kaneko flied out to left. Horie grounded out to catcher. Furukawa singled to center. Kimihara doubled to left, Furukawa to third. Yamagishi singled to left, Furukawa scored, Kimihara to third. Takeda flied out to right. Sakurakoku, 6-0.
Top 4th: *smudge* singled to center. *smudge* singled to right, *smudge* to second. *smudge* flied out to right, *smudge* to third. *smudge* doubled to center, *smudge* scored, *smudge* scored. *smudge* grounded out to second, *smudge* to third. *smudge* flied out to center. Sakurakoku, 6-2.
Bottom 4th: Furukawa doubled to left. Kimihara doubled to right, Furukawa scored. Yamagishi fouled out to first. Takeda singled to right, Kimihara scored. Kusao grounded into fielder's choice, third baseman *smudge* to second baseman *smudge*, Takeda out at second. Suzuki popped out to catcher. Sakurakoku, 8-2.
Bottom 5th: Katou homered to left-center. Kaneko struck out. Horie singled to left-center. Furukawa doubled to center, Horie scored. Kimihara walked. Yamagishi grounded into fielder's choice, third baseman *smudge* unassisted, Furukawa out at third, Kimihara to second. Takeda tripled to right, Kimihara scored, Yamagishi scored. Kusao singled to center, Takeda scored. Suzuki singled to left, Kusao to second. Katou doubled to right, Kusao scored, Suzuki scored. Kaneko doubled to center, Katou scored. Horie flied out to center. Sakurakoku, 16-2.
Top 6th: *smudge* walked. *smudge* flied out to center. *smudge* homered to left-center, *smudge* scored. *smudge* singled to left. *smudge* safe on fielding error by shortstop Takeda, *smudge* to second. *smudge* grounded out to shortstop. Sakurakoku, 16-4.
Bottom 6th: Furukawa singled to right-center. Kimihara struck out. Yamagishi walked, Furukawa to second. Takeda homered to left-center, Furukawa scored, Yamagishi scored. Kusao walked. Suzuki popped out to shortstop. Katou singled to center, Kusao to second. Kaneko flied out to right. Sakurakoku, 19-3.

[Maklohi Vai]

Nomolo realized there was little support from the international community, but his peers told him not to worry. However, he was a caring man, who tried to please everyone. Therefore, he wrote this open letter to Milchama:

To whomever Milchaman it concerns:

Please review the following two passages. They are rough translations of the offering I initiated to Margaret on behalf of the Vaian team. These are not exact, as my expertise of languages does not fully expand to Hebrew or Maori. The Hebrew is merely rough, but instead of Maori, the dialect provided is a local dialect from Maklohi Vai; the island from which it originates had a sizable Maori minority originally, so there are definitely some influences. Please take a look at them. I hope they take care of your concerns as to the nature of the offerings, but as you know, the purpose was served as our team won. There will be another sacrifice tonight, to ensure our continued success. I would also like to thank you for informing us of customs, as we are inexperienced in the ways of Margaret.

"מרגרט, אנו מרכינים לפניך בעבדות נצחית. מגישים לא אחר. מגישי מטרתך והמטרה שלך. אנו מבקשים את רשותך הצלחה ביום הזה האפל של הטורניר הזה., חזק כל כך, רק את נשאר שיכול להציל ארה"ב. מרגרט, אנחנו עושים קרבן זה עליך רק לך. ייתכן שיפוט האלוהי היתר ארה"ב כדי להצליח. אנחנו אהיה אסיר תודה לנצח. "

"MARGARET, KAMI PUI AITEILUM ANTA TALAM PURMUTAKAN KEIKAL KAMI MALAWANI NO LAINA.. KAMI MELAYANI HANYA PENYEBAB ANDA PON TUJUAN ANDA. KAMI MEMINTA IZIN DARI ANDA SUKSES PADA HARI INI TUKUR MU TURNAMEN INI. ANDA, ATAS SEMUA KUAT, ADALAH SATU HANYA POM BISA MENYELAMATKAN MAM. MARGARET, KAMI MEMBUAT PENGORBANAN INI KEPADA ANDA UNTUK ANDA HANYA DAPAT PENGHAKIMAN ILAHI ANDA IZIN UNTUK BERHASIL MAM.. KAMI akan berterima kasih. "

Nomolo Porukanai,
Father of the City of Urmakani

The general opinion in Maklohi Vai was different, however. "Whatever works" was the prevailing attitude towards the ritual, but that towards the Milchaman response was quite different. "Step off," says fan Rumono Lormakani. "We can do whatever we want, just keep to yourselves and don't bother us. Just step off."

Meanwhile, Nomolo was still facing controversy. His liberal fellows, approximately 70 percent of the clergy, were in support of his move. Moderates, 15 percent, were willing to let it go as long as it didn't get out of hand. Conservatives, the remainder, were quite differently minded. Some were calling for his resignation; radicals called for his excommunication. But so far nothing had escalated. That would change once Nomolo performed another service.

That night, as had previously been done, 10,000 rubber chickens were carted in. "Don't mess with success," muttered Lomnai. Like any baseball player, past or present, he was very superstitious. Nomolo had a different plan. This time, he would appeal to a minority. The Basque population of Maklohi Vai numbered in the thousands, but it was very vocal. Chickens were a common sight in their cooking, so Nomolo figured that as long as the sacrifice was still appropriate, the great Margaret would still appreciate it.

"Margaret, etortzen gara gaur gauean, zure ekintza eta zure betiko botere eskerrak handiena.
Zure jainkozko presentzia egin gure talde maiteak arimak irabazteko.
Da, eta gure zure hartzen espiritua owntun dorrux, hemen bildu dira gaur egun.
Margaret, ye ahalik eta presentzia handiena voxun DE ye, ye botere handiena.
Baina dugu gurku axolas zatoz gaur egiten dugu, ETA ERRAZA foxals dugu nahia.
Baina jolas bat da, baina partida bat, hain zuzen ere DA. ZURE pukor bakarrik kontrola dezakete Joko hau DA.
Margaret, box ZUREA dugu ZURE pukor, gure taldeak ZUZENDUA izango da.
GURE etsaia gainean behartsuak zure zorigaiztoko haserrea.
Otoitz Zure esanetara, Margaret, GURE espiritua handiena izan duten. ESKERRIK ZURE aldiz, ETA ZURE consideración.
Margaret, gure taldearen salbatzailea, bok tux dugu egun honetan.
Zure lana egiteko utziko dugu, ZURE pukor AS ahalik eta errespetatzen dugu. BALITEKE erruki ETA besterik ez izango zara."

(For those who do not speak Basque, here is the English translation)
"Margaret, we come to you tonight in the greatest appreciation for your actions and your everlasting power.
Your divine presence carried the souls of our beloved team to win.
It is for that, and for our dutiful servitude to your encompassing spirit, that we are gathered here today.
MARGARET, YE OF THE UTMOST PRESENCE, YE OF THE GREATEST VISION, YE OF THE GREATEST POWER.
WE HAVE BUT SIMPLE MINDS WE COME WITH TODAY, AND SIMPLE FOLLIES WE DESIRE.
IT IS BUT A GAME, BUT A GAME IT IS INDEED. IT IS YOUR POWER ONLY THAT CAN CONTROL THIS GAME.
MARGARET, WE BEG OF YOU YOUR POWER, TO BE DIRECTED AT OUR TEAM.
MAY YOUR FATEFUL WRATH BE STRICKEN UPON OUR FOES.
WE PRAY TO YOU, MARGARET, WITH OUR GREATEST SPIRIT. THANK YOU FOR YOUR TIME, AND FOR YOUR CONSIDERATION.
MARGARET, SAVIOR OF OUR TEAM, WE BEG OF YOU THIS DAY.
WE LEAVE YOU TO DO YOUR WORK, AS WE RESPECT YOUR UTMOST POWER. MAY YOU BE MERCIFUL AND JUST."

And as before, Nomolo would have to wait for his peers' full wrath. The moderates would turn at any mistake, and the conservatives would just get more rabid. He waited in fear.

(OOC 1: Free cookie to who can identify the second language of the priest's letter. There are some changed words.)



(OOC 2: Runscorers, etc., are added onto this RP below, mainly for statistical purposes)

Kerblaekistan         011 000 051 - 8			
Maklohi Vai           331 310 00X - 11

Maklohi Vai Scoring Summary
1st: After a double by Roma'ai to lead off, Uilnai drew a walk, putting men on first and third with one out. Mae'ao hit a monster home run for three runs to dead center.
2nd: Aputo Roma'ai hit a single with one out. Iao Laina then hit another single to put men on first and third. After a strikeout by Uilnai, Mae'ao hit his second three run home run of the game, this time to left.
3rd: Arnao led off the inning with a solo shot to right.
4th: After Roma'ai grounded out, Laina and Uilnai hit back to back singles, setting it up once again for Mae'ao, who once again delivered, this time striking it to right with a swing that was almost all arms.
5th: Moalna’akai Lai hit a double to drive in Arnao, who had led off the inning with a single.
(OOC: I must confess I was inspired by the LLWS game where the Tennessee player hit three three-run homers.)

Stat update:
HR: Mae'ao 12, Arnao 1, Koilani Ruputuo 1, Moalna’akai Lai 1, Ri'ino Ulnai 1, Iao Laina 1, Wolo Rakinalmanai 1
RBI: Mae'ao 30, Moalna’akai Lai 4, Aputo Roma'ai 3, Wolo Rakinalmanai 3, Koilani Ruputuo 1, Iao Laina 1, Ri'ino Ulnai 1, Arnao 1