World Baseball Classic XXV - Everything Thread

[The Sova Empire]

Coach Greg Sova gazed out from the dugout in the bottom of the 9th inning. He recapped in his mind the highlights of the game. TSE had a lead for the first time ever after a clutch 2-out, 2 on, 2 base hit by Watt in the 5th inning. Morale was high in the TSE dugout, as there was talk of a stunning, upset victory by TSE. The lead slowly got away from them, though, as Tammarah started to lose some speed in his fastball, and catcher Marty Bzibziak of Vaugainia took advantage. In the bottom of the ninth, Tammarah had a 3-2 count with 2 outs and could seal a 3-2 victory with an out of any kind. Tammarah tried to strike him out with a fastball down the middle, which in hindsight was a mistake. Bzibziak popped a solo home run over the fence and tied it up 3-3. Coach Greg had to call a conference with his pitcher. After calming him down, a groundout ended the top of the 9th. Much to Coach Greg’s dismay, the TSE offense could not score, and they went to extra innings. Relief pitcher Fil Pepsi was sent in and clearly couldn’t hold it together and gave up a 3 run homerun. Coach Greg was furious, but he calmly called a conference for all of the infielders. With no outs and a 3 run deficit, Coach Greg made a decision that shocked all of the players. Greg Sova took the baseball and did not give any sign to the bullpen. “Relax guys, I was a pretty good bowler back in my prime, and I can throw a mean underhand.” explained Greg. This clearly was something Vaugainia was not used to, because Greg took them down on 9 pitches. TSE’s morale was back, and the bases were loaded in the bottom of the 10th with no outs. A pop fly was hit by Huu, and the 3rd baseman leaped and caught it. In the confusion, he tagged the 2nd baseman, and tagged the bag on 3rd. The crowd couldn’t believe their eyes, as the final score was 6-3 in 10 innings, and it was ended by an unassisted triple play.

[Aardenland]

Serbia Keeps on top of Aardenland

Wins First Game of Classic, 7-4

Aardenland and the Serbian Empire faced off at Peace Stadium Sunday Afternoon. Serbia drew first blood in the contest, and kept the lead for the rest of the game. Among Aardenland's players, the one who shined most in spite of defeat was Silver Wouda, who hit for the cycle in this amazing first contest. Despite that, while the National Team scored four runs against Serbian Starter Marijo Darkovic, the bullpen took over for the seventh inning, and would not give. Aardenland's bullpen was not as lucky. Roël Touw, despite striking out five players in two innings, gave up a run in each of those innings. In a postgame interview, manager Batari Sastrowardoyo said, "The players played magnificently today. Their individual performances showed that. If we can sync it up for the next games, we will conquer." Aardenland heads to the land of the Komodo Dragon, where the team is confident for a quick comeback. Iddo Dietrich will take the mound for Aardenland.


GAME SUMMARY

Third Inning

Serbia: With Silas van Hoven pitching, Momcilo Dusanovic singled to center with two outs. Josip Petrovic doubled into the right-center field gap, scoring Dusanovic. Jure Klemenic Doubled into center field, scoring Petrovic. Serbia leads, 2-0

Aardenland: With Marijo Darkovic pitching, Silver Wouda hit a one-out home run to right field. Serbia leads, 2-1

Fourth Inning

Serbia: Marko Pavelovic singled into center field. Darijo Sreckovic grounded to the third baseman, moving Pavelovic to second. Zdenko Mihalic struck out. Borislav Cedomiric hit a two-run homer into left field. Serbia leads, 4-1

Aardenland: With two outs, Sally Karlsson tripled into right field. Wouda hit an infield single to third base. Karlsson stole home, Wouda stole second. Desmond de Waal drew a walk. Odessa Kroon singled to right field, scoring Wouda. Serbia leads, 4-3

Sixth Inning

Serbia: Pavelovic hit a double into the left-center field gap. Sreckovic walked. Roël Touw relieved van Hoven. Mihalic struck out. Cedomiric struck out. Ivan Jovanoski hit an infield single to the third baseman, moving Pavelovic to third and Sreckovic to second. Pavelovic scored on a fielding error by the first baseman. Serbia leads 5-3

Aardenland: Wouda hit a one-out double to center field. de Waal singled to left field, scoring Wouda. Serbia leads 5-4

Seventh Inning

Serbia: Klemenic hit a one-out double into the right field gap. Touw balked, moving Klemenic to third. Pavelovic grounded to the shortstop, scoring Klemenic. Serbia leads 6-4.

Eighth Inning

Serbia: Cedomiric hit a one-out double to left field off of Terry O'Kelley. Tomaz Kopitar pinch-hit for pitcher Milos Nemecek. Kopitar doubled to left field, scoring Cedomiric. Serbia leads 7-4

SERBIA WINS 7-4

Player of the Game:

BORISLAV CEDOMIRIC -
Scored two runs on double and two-run home run, making the difference in Serbia's first contest.

[Pretty Awesome Persons]

"Ugh, Luka, what did you get me into?" Amelia van Stegen sinked into her seat and pushed her cap down. The sounds of boos from Awesomite fans could be heard everywhere.

"Sorry, Amelia. Hey, at least nobody has recognized you yet! Maybe you can sneak out and still escape with your dignity!" responded the Commissioner of the ABL, Luka Zupancic.

"Yeah, because you know, a 6' 2" woman is SO common, nobody turns around. Besides, that would be horrible for PR and with my reelection campaign about to start, I wouldn't want to risk a PR disaster this early."

"*sigh* Amelia, a victory for you is nearly guaranteed! Didn't you see the latest polls? The only other candidate anywhere near you is Marija Vidovic and we both know SHE isn't going to beat you."

"Whatever, I'm not even done with my popcorn yet. We aren't losing that bad, anyway! It's only 5-2 and there's still two innings left. I hear our closer, what's his name....Novik? Yeah, Jeff Novik, I hear his fastball was clocked at over 160 kmh! That's good, right?"

"Yeah, it's incredible. But they scored five off our ace, I really doubt our closer will fare any better..."

"Have faith, Luka! Look! There he comes!" Presidenta van Stegen stands up and gives Jeff Novik a round of applause. "Just watch, this will be two easy innings for us and poof, we'll be able to both leave with an iota of dignity."

Novik throws the first pitch. Strike. Marion Phillips, the batter, took a step out of the box, wiped his sweat and went back in. Novik throws a second pitch. Strike.

"See, Luka? He's got this." As soon as Amelia said that, Phillips hits a bomb into left field. The home crowd erupts and Amelia sinks into her seat even further. "I spoke too soon, it seems...."

"Yeah."

Novik shakes it off and faces the next two batters. He strikes Watanabe out and Morales pops out.

"Well, at least he limited the damage. 6-2 isn't a terrible loss...is it, Luka?"

"*sigh* Not as bad as 10-0, but we were roughed up pretty bad."

"Well, our 3, 4 and 5 spots are up next, so maybe we could score a run."

"Yeah....Nikolaidis has come in clutch at times back at home."

Muller, Nikolaidis and Athanasiadis popped out, and it was time for the ninth. By this point, most of the Awesomite supporters have left and gone to their hotel rooms to hug their pillows and sob. But not Luka and Amelia.

"Amelia, maybe we should really go...the home crowd might get out of control and you never know..."

"Nonsense, Luka. We stay and watch the end. I paid for a whole game, not for eight innings. Besides, I'm packing heat." Amelia shows Luka her personal handgun and laughs.

Novik comes out again, and Kinzar's cleanup hitter, Howard Treadwell, will lead off. He hits a line drive, but only manages a single. The following batter, Brett Alexander, strikes out. Devon Charles has the same fate. Curtis Carreon, their number 7 hitter and catcher goes up to the plate.

"Psh, it's their number seven hitter. He'll probably strike out or something."

"Don't be so confident, Amelia." Carreon swings and misses at the first pitch. Novik throws a ball for the second pitch, and also the third pitch. He throws a strike for the fouth and a ball for the fifth. Full count, man on first. Novik throws a fastball down the middle, big mistake. Carreon smashes it and gets credited with an RBI double. The score is now 7-2. Jimmy Deakin steps into the box. Novik throws two strikes and could end this with one more strike. Novik decides to go all out and musters the energy for a 165 kmh fastball. It grazes Deakin on the chest, but caused no harm. Deakin trots to first base. Their pitcher, Matthew Barnes is next.

"C'mon Jeff, he's the pitcher. Strike him out." At the first pitch, Barnes hits a line drive into left and gets credited with a RBI single.

"Holy sky fairy, Jeff. You really blow at this game."

Novik manages to strand the runners by forcing their next batter to line out.

"Luka, if our team is this bad, I never want to come back."

[Western cuba]

Las Palabras de Libertad

WBC XXV Preview

Javier Andino

Well a few things went down as expected yesterday, and then a few that we didn’t. So overall, it was a good day to watch baseball.

The grand opening of Dvorets Korolev was quite spectacular, despite the militarist way it was introduced. Wounded soldiers from the ongoing war with the Page carried the flag of Western Cuba onto the infield, stretching the vast field across the field dimensions of Dvorets Korolev. As they did so, the crowd sang, Nashi Brat’ya Po Oruzhiyu. Known in English as, our brothers in arms to the soldiers as a thank you for serving their country before the national anthem was played.

It was quite the tribute for the soldiers who had suffered so much during the ongoing bloody conflict. Unfortunately though, it was the way it was used which disgusted me greatly. The soldiers were just a propaganda symbol for the ongoing war. The government has no regard for those men who have lost limbs, arms, and their best friends supposedly for the country which protects them.

Back to baseball, I had many questions lingering as the national team hit the field against ViZion. My biggest question was the inexperience of this young team, and that was answered positively last night.

Roman Semyonov, Marko Rogov, and Vassi Rasputin turned out to be pleasant surprises to the team. Semyonov’s arm, Rogov’s speed, and Rasputin’s golden glove were eye catching and I can’t wait to see more of it in the future.

When Rogov stole for second in the fifth, he seemed like he was already on base by the time the ball hit the mitt of the ViZion catcher, Richard Matthews.

And when Vassi Rasputin robbed Michael Richardson of what seemed to be a game-changing home run, I found myself out of my seat shouting and cheering. Seeing, Vassi flip over the small wall in center field, and emerge with the ball in his glove. That sight was priceless.

But that didn’t even come close to my major surprise, something I expected Western Cuba to of handled easily with Alejandro Torres starting on the mound. While the pitching rotation is low on experience, Torres has starred on this team the last few classics, and was expected by many to pass Fredek Fenyak as the greatest pitcher of all time.

That for sure did not seem to be yesterday, with Torres allowing four runs in five innings. Instead it was the inexperienced who prospered, with Vladik Levin successfully relieving Torres for three innings.

So is the inexperienced actually doing better than those who remain for the championship teams that the Republic made? Its early, after all it was only one matchday. But will then trend continue when Western Cuba faces St. Lud tomorrow at home? We will only find out.

[Vaugania]

9TH INNING

Marty Bzibziak knelt down in the on-deck circle before he took his cracks in the top of the 9th. 3-2 The Sova Empire. Vaugania's chances looked rather dismal at this point. He exhaled deeply and turned his attention to Jaromir Braun in the batter's box. He caught a curve from Tom Tammarah and sent a line drive screaming into left field. TSE's Roffeld ran back and made a desperation leap. It looked certain Braun would have a 2 bagger at least least, but nonetheless, Roffeld snowconed the ball and drove the tally up to two outs.

Marty looked out at the mound for a moment before advancing towards the plate. He took a final moment to collect his thoughts and trudged out from the dugout before the gathering of hostile fans. There was some Vauganian gold sprinkled here and there, but the noise of the TSE fans was overpowering and drowned any Vauganian attempts at cheering on their team.

Tammarah gave Bzibziak the first pitch of the at bat low and inside. Bzibziak took a wild hack and earned his first strike. Tammarah tried to get him to chase an outside slider, but didn't have any luck. Nobody would have chanced a swing at that pitch. Bzibziak suffered his second strike from a good fastball and he stepped out of the box. He closed his eys and took several deep breaths. He was one strike away from losing Vaugania's inaugural baseball game. The catcher shoved that thought out of his head and reentered the batter's box. Tammarah wound up and fired another fastball. It seemed a little slow and it came right down the middle. A meatball. Bzibziak loved meatballs. Especially on top of spaghetti. He swished his bat and hit the ball with the meat of his barrel. The white orb sailed through the Temple Dome sky and was lost beyond the left field wall. Bzibziak pumped his fist in triumph as he rounded all 4 bases.

10TH INNING

Janicek singles up the middle. Braun takes 2 balls and a strike. Doubles up the right center power alley! Runners on 2nd and 3rd. The game's tied 3-3.

These thoughts and more bounced around Asmund Skjeggestad's head as he ran around second base. He wasn't even running, actually. It was more of a leisurely trot. He remembered the pitch he got. That big, hanging curve that was wishing to be smashed. It got it's wished. Asmund sent Fil Pepsi's pitch into the far off lands of the right field bleachers. Janicek crossed the plate. Braun did the same. As Skjeggestad saw the white pentagon before him, he wiped the dumbfounded look off of his face. The right fielder spread a massive grin across his face and jumped onto home plate with both feet. He then realized it was 6-3 Vaugania. He ran towards the dugout and leaped from the top of the stairs. He landed in a big mob of his teammates without even noticing the next three batters go down all on strikeouts. Things were left to Jonas Abel and he took care of them handily.

Final Score: Vaugania 6, The Sova Empire 3

[Kinzar]

Successful First Step

President Spencer was in Madrid for the first ever international game in which Kinzar would participate in. With just a few bodyguards, he walked around the concourses of the stadium and took notice of all of the fanfare. Kinzar, too, will need to put on a great show when the World Baseball Classic comes to Hudson, and although he won’t admit to looking for ideas to imitate, he may have been doing just that. He saw the excitement of the people, and that made him overjoyed. Kinzites would no doubt feel the same way, and that would send his approval ratings through the roof and could be enough to keep him in his office for the next 19 years as well. (In Kinzar, Presidents may serve a maximum of four 5-year terms). Not only were the fans excited, they were also buying things. He liked that part too, because the sporting impact is just the first part of the equation. It is an going to be the straw that stirs the economic drink.

His next step was not planned. But after proving his identity to stadium security, Spencer was allowed to go the visitor’s locker room where the Wildcats had just returned from taking batting practice. The players were surprised to see him, but they were also very aware that if it were not for this President, none of them would be in Pretty Awesome Persons. Any disagreement in political party preferences didn’t matter to the players now, for Spencer was a true hero. Kevin considered giving the players an inspirational talk, but told the group he would leave that for manager David Rogers. The President shook the players hands and kept his message very simple, and that was to just be proud of representing Kinzar tonight. After engaging in some small talk, Spencer went to his assigned area to watch the game. Rogers then took over the task of motivation, but it really wasn’t needed. Anyone who could not be excited to play in this game, the first ever, did not belong in the locker room.

Game time approached and some players struggled to fight back tears as the national anthem played before the start of the game. Finally, it was time to play, and Marion Phillips took a slow stroll to the batters box for the moment he had been interviewed about relentlessly by the Kinzite media. Taking a deep breath, Phillips did not break from his normal routine, of tapping his bat on the lower inside and outside corner of the plate, adjusting his batting helmet, and staring down the pitcher. He took the first pitch, like he normally does, to get a clear look at Lefebvre’s delivery and release point. It went for strike one, but it was a fastball, and nothing different then any other fastball he had seen before from a top level pitcher. Again, Phillips tapped the corners of the plate as the second pitch came at him, and singled up the middle. President Spencer applauded while the Wildcats gained a ton of confidence. It may be at a bigger scale, a world scale, but at the end of the day, it was baseball. The same game they have played their whole lives.

The early momentum was contagious. Hideki Watanabe followed it up with a single of his own. Then Pablo Morales stepped up blast a shot to the left field wall, needing just a few more inches to have gone over, but certainly settling for a 2-run double. A single from Howard Treadwell made it 3-0, and the visitors dugout soon became the only place in the ballpark where there was any kind of excitement. Coach Kovacevic paid a visit to the mound to settle down his ace after the Treadwell hit, and Lefebvre would not allow another hit in the inning, but two fly ball outs would translate to Treadwell being driven in himself. 4-0 Wildcats, and all they had to do was to not implode equally in the bottom half of the inning. Even though Matthew Barnes surrendered a run in the first, he seemed to look good enough for the team not to get too concerned over it. As the innings went by, Kinzar was clearly in command. Later in the game, Marlon Phillips made himself the answer to another trivia question, becoming the first Kinzite to hit a home run in the World Baseball Classic. It was off their closer, Jeff Novik, known for having an overpowering fastball. Phillips did admit that he took the first pitch to “just get a look at it”. Facing an 0-2 count, Phillips anticipated where the next pitch would go, and got a perfect swing on it, blasting a shot over the left field wall. “I just guessed right. With a pitcher like Novik you just have do that. Man that guy throws hard and I had the feeling though he would come right after with me up high and I went with that instinct.” Phillips was selected by Kinzite reporters as the player of the game, though pitcher Matthew Barnes was stellar as well as he not only got a complete game, but also had an RBI single in the contest.

Following the game, if the team got a big head from this win, coach Rogers quickly deflated it. “They’re not Milchama. Or Qazox. Or even Quebec.” The next game will be in Hudson, against the 49th ranked Expos of The Royal Kingdom of Quebec. They lost 5-1 to Mapletish today.

[Powersith]

Powersith Wins 1st Game 8-4!

Parsee Mizuhashi 1 0 2 0 0 1 0 0 0 4
Powersith 0 1 0 0 1 4 2 0 X 8

What a great way to open up World Baseball Classic XXV with a win! Our Giants held Parsee Mizuhashi to only 4 runs, and our batting exploded to bring in 8.

After opening festivities (National Anthems, Lineup announcements), the game began. In the 1st inning, with 2 outs, Parsee Mizhuashi's Speedy Spark Magician put a score on the board, making it 1-0. Powersith responded in the 2nd inning with a lead off home run by Stephan Contras. The 3rd inning Parsee scored again. It seemed like a back and forth game, as Powersith was trailing 3-1. The 4th inning brought no score, and there hadn't been a change on the mound. Willie Ways Jr. was doing fine so far with 5 Ks and 3 earned runs. He either struck out batters, or he made them pop or ground out. In the 5th inning, Guermo Menerick hit a single RBI which brought Steven Choi home to score. To reply a 6th inning Parsee Mizuhashi run, Powersith opened the flood gates. Stephan Contras, on his 3rd time on plate with the bases loaded, slammed the ball and sent it flying over the stadium into the ocean, where fans were eager to catch it. The 7th inning opened with Willie Ways Jr. being replaced by Joseph Wasco. Again Powersith scored in with single RBIs from Henry Links and Guermo Menerick. There would not be any more scoring after that, and the final score would have the Powersith Baseball Giants prevailing, 8-4.

Stats:
Pitching:
Willie Ways Jr.: 6 IP 5 H 4 ER
Batting:
1.Stephan Contras 4/5 (2 singles, 2 homeruns)
2.Ben Belmont 3/5 (3 singles)
3.Steven Choi 3/5 (3 singles)
4.Henry Links 2/4 (2 singles 1 RBI)
5.Guermo Menenrick 3/4 (3 singles 2 RBI)
6. Mendez Wilson 1/4 (1 single)
7.Vickkanov Bleckat 1/3 (1 single)
8.Charlie Kaz 1/3 (1 single)
9. Willie Ways Jr. 1/3 (1 single)


Complete Batting Stats:
1.Stephan Contras 4/5 (2 singles, 2 homeruns)
2.Ben Belmont 3/5 (3 singles)
3.Steven Choi 3/5 (3 singles)
4.Henry Links 2/4 (2 singles 1 RBI)
5.Guermo Menenrick 3/4 (3 singles 2 RBI)
6. Mendez Wilson 1/4 (1 single)
7.Vickkanov Bleckat 1/3 (1 single)
8.Charlie Kaz 1/3 (1 single)
9. Willie Ways Jr. 1/3 (1 single)


Pitchers Complete Stats:
Starting Rotation:
Willie Ways Jr.: 1-0 4.0 ERA
Willie Ways III:
Brian Bakerson:
John Phoenix:
Lei Wingo:

Bullpen (Relief/Closers):
Joseph Wasco: 1 Save
Jermey Les:
Kivnov Reknov:
Nino Rodriguesz:
Vergil Smith:


Game Preview for Powersith Vs Taeshan

Next on the Powersith Baseball Giants game list is against international powerhouse Taeshan. Both teams are in 1st and 2nd place in the group standings. Being ranked #7 internationally can bring fear onto opponents. When asked if Taeshan's rank brought fear onto the Giants, Manager Rusty Rustov replied, "We don't have fear. We just have the excitement that we get to represent a great nation."

Young pitching prodigy Willie Ways III, grand-son of legendary Willie Ways, and son of Willie Ways Jr., will be on the mound for the game. He pitched in WBC XXIV, where he was the only pitcher to go 2-0, and had a low ERA of 1.5.

The Giants will be at home again, and so the home field advantage can play a factor. It will be another sell out crowd as all the tickets have already been purchased. Emperor Viros Levnan will be watching again just like today.

Prepare for an exciting game tommorow, as both teams stand 1-0, and anything can happen in the World Baseball Classic.
***

Current Standings:
1)Powersith 1 1 0 8 4 +4 1.000
2)Taeshan 1 1 0 3 1 +2 1.000
3)Sicoutimont 1 1 0 4 3 +1 1.000
4)Rodard 1 0 1 3 4 −1 0.000
5)Karditan 1 0 1 1 3 −2 0.000
6)Parsee Mizuhashi 1 0 1 4 8 −4 0.000

[Maklohi Vai]

Part 1
OOC: This starts a few days before the first game, then ends a bit after it.

Kumalo left the office with the relative blessing of Nomolo, and with the blessing he left with confidence. The first recruitment call would go to his cousin Lokumo, a website designer by trade but a faithful man by character. Faithful not in a specific deity, but in what he could see. When he saw the effectiveness of the Polynesian Socialist system that his country ran under, he believed in that. When he saw the love that his wife had in their newborn son, he had faith in that. Likewise, when he saw the effects of the prayers to Margaret, he had faith in that.

"Hello?"

"Lokumo, man, it's Kumalo."

"Hey! How you doing? I haven't heard from you in a while."

"I'm good, man, I'm good. Hey, I'm getting together a group and I was wondering if you would want to be part of it."

"Sure, sure. What is it?"

"It is a group for the admiration and respect of Margaret, decider of sporting fate."

"My cousin, I am honored. I would be glad to join this group."

"Thank you. Please come to my house tomorrow at 9 after the game. We will make our first sacrifice."

"Yes, cousin. I will be there. Good bye."

"Good bye."

---

At 9, Lokumo appeared at Kumalo's door, shaky but determined.
"Cousin, how are you?"
"Good, good. Do you have the chickens?"
"I could only get 15, but it is what it is."
"In fact, I found two at my house. So we have 17 now."
"17 chickens- now that's random."
"Shall we begin?"
"Yes. Do you mind if I lead the prayer?"
"Not at all. Go ahead."

Kumalo knelt on both knees and clasped his hands. Doubt rushed through him, enveloping his soul and his conscious. He took a breath, and it subsided. This was the future of his team. There was only one thing he could do: Start.

"Margaret, I humbly pray to you today not as a man of the cloth, but as a man of the earth and of normality.
I pray to you in deference of your supreme powers, your supreme will, your supreme state of being.
It is with trepidation and tremulations that I pray, but these do not restrict my diction to the point of ceasing.
Margaret, I pray to you tonight in hope that you will bequeath your greatness onto our beloved baseball team.
They may be playing just a game, but as you have no doubt observed, there is a great interested vested in this team.
This interest is vested by the people of this great nation, a people I love greatly and a people I would give my life for.
Margaret, I pray that you may put your great powers on this team once more, as you have already done so for the first time today.
May you take my prayer in good intention, and my sacrifice for your pleasure and benefit. Thank you."

Kumalo cut the chickens, and immediately dropped to the floor, face down. Exhaustion had hit him in full.
Lokumo looked at him. "That was good, cousin. Very good."

---

Game Recap

Maklohi Vai                      2 0 0 1 1 3 0 1 0  8
The Priory of St. Luc            0 0 0 4 0 0 0 0 0  4

Scoring Summary
1st: Iao Laina hit a single to left field with one out. Two batters later, Mae'ao hit a two run shot to right.
4th: Mae'ao led off the inning with a solo shot to left.
5th: Aputo Roma’ai doubled with two outs, and was then driven in by an Iao Laina single.
6th: Mae'ao led off with a triple to right. Koilani Ruputuo was walked behind him, setting up Arnao for a three run homer over the wall in deep center.
8th: Mae'ao led off the inning with a monster homer to left.

Stat update:
HR: Mae'ao 3, Arnao 1
RBI: Mae'ao 4, Arnao 3, Iao Laina 1

[THRILLEDGE]

Live from the post-game press conference:

(Coach Matthew Haering comes in a sits down behind the microphones.)

"Okay, we will now open it up for questions. Yes, in the front right..."

"Coach, Michelle Haynes from the Avensborough Post, what happened out there at the plate?"

"Well let me first say that it's pretty tough to get hits when you're going out there against an ace on the top of his game. He pitched phenomenally, however, I was expecting us to put the ball in play more, way too many strikeouts. You can't get on base in you don't make contact. I think we just went in a little too confidently and we got burned for it."

"Jeff, we'll go to you."

"Hey Coach, Jeff Pearlman, TSN. Do you think that last Classic's Quarterfinal experience will help the team this year?"

"Tonight, I would say no but in the long run, yes. We defintely underestimated a good Lymantatia team that can hang with the rest of us. We can't continue to do that especially when we need to win every game we can with some good teams in this group. But ultimately I think last year's quarterfinals will give us some great experience. We played some good teams and hopefully we can get farther this year."

"Second row on the left..."

"Len Undermeyer, Zollnando Times. Is Raymond slowing down? Not really his best stuff today."

"Give the guy a break, it's just one game. He's still our best pitcher and we know he's our ace. Three runs in six and two-thirds isn't awful but we know he can bounce back. He usually does."

"Okay, we'll take you in the back left...."

[Estope]

Thomas-Johnson Field was rocking for this highly anticipated matchup. The 17th ranked New Montreal States were traveling to Estope to face the 33rd ranked Estope. The stadium had sold out weeks in advance for the opening game of the 25th World Baseball Classic. Estope had success in their last appearance and even qualified for the playoffs. However, their run ended in the Round of 20 in 3 games to THRILLEDGE. The team came into this tournament with unfinished business in mind. Everyone from last years team will return this year with the addition of a new pitcher. There will be absolutely no excuse for failure. But they started off poorly with a loss in the very first game. In a low scoring game, Estope just couldn't muster enough hits of New Montreal States excellent pitching staff. Their starting pitcher, Ronnie Ledoux, played 7 innings and allowed only a single Estope run. Frédéric Lefèvre gave up a late run in the ninth inning, but all in all Estope just couldn't get their offense going. Our superb pitching staff played well except for the relief pitchers, a surprise considering how stout they were last classic. Eric Almanza the started gave up only a single run through six innings. Jonathon Nitka picked up the loss by allowing an unearned run in the 8th inning. Alex Avez overthrew second base on a routine grounder and allowed the runner to advance all the way home. Closer Colin Noakes also struggled and gave up two runs. This game was a learning experience for this team. They need to cut down on the errors, 3 in this game, and need to make timely hits if they want to win some games. They can still rebound and qualify but they face a tough road ahead of them. Up next is #8 Lycrabon on the road. That will be a very tough game and will require an almost flawless effort for Estope to come away with the win. Of course, newcomers Komodo Dragon defeated Lycrabon handily in their first game by a score of 10-3. After that the schedule will get easier and the next three games before the midpoint should all be relatively easy games. There is still a long way to go and much to be decided for all the teams. Estope showed great hustle and effort but just fell short. They must rebound quickly to stay in contention in the group.

New Montreal States              0 0 1 0 0 0 0 1 2  4
Estope                           0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 1  2

Batting

Player         ab 	r 	h      rbi      bb     lob 
Alex Avez 	4 	1 	2 	0 	0 	0 
Max Meister 	1 	0 	0 	0 	0 	0 
 - Clark Schack 1 	0 	1 	1 	1 	0 
Cory Keys 	4 	0 	0 	1 	0 	1 
Jessie Driggers 4 	0 	0 	0 	0 	3 
Henry Fowler 	4 	0 	1 	0 	0 	0 
Fabio Fernandez 4 	0 	0 	0 	0 	0 
Austin Forde 	3 	0 	0 	0 	0 	0 
Bryant Bolman 	3 	1 	1 	0 	0 	0 
James Campella 	2 	0 	0 	0 	0 	0 

Totals 	       30 	2 	5 	2 	1 	4

Pitching

Player  	ip 	h 	r 	er 	bb 	so 	wp 	bk 	hbp 	ibb 	ab 	bf 	fo 	go 	np 
Eric Almanza  	 6.0 	4 	1 	1 	3 	5 	1 	0 	1 	0 	20 	25 	7 	5 	102 
Noel Pelot  	 0.2 	1 	0 	0 	1 	0 	0 	0 	2 	0 	3 	6 	0 	2 	18 
Jonathon Nitka 	 1.1 	0 	1 	0 	1 	0 	0 	0 	0 	0 	1 	2 	1 	0 	11 
 L , 0-1
Colin Noakes  	 1.0 	0 	2 	2 	1 	0 	0 	0 	0 	0 	2 	4 	1 	2 	18

Group 5                          Pld    W   L    RF   RA   RD    Win %
1  Komodo Dragon                   1    1   0    10    3   +7    1.000
2  The Serbian Empire              1    1   0     7    4   +3    1.000
3  New Montreal States             1    1   0     4    2   +2    1.000
4  Estope                          1    0   1     2    4   −2    0.000
5  Aardenland                      1    0   1     4    7   −3    0.000
6  Lycrabon                        1    0   1     3   10   −7    0.000

[The Serbian Empire]

The Serbian Empire won 7-4 today, but with the success of the game there was a slight issue which led to the converted right-fielder Milos Nemecek needing a pinch hitter. The problems actually came from blistering on Nemecek's hand from a pair of fastballs to strike out the last hitter in the bottom of the 7th inning which were recorded at 104 and 102 mp/h. The fastballs were so crisp that nobody could get more than light contact at best on them, but the blisters were forming from the release of the pitches. As a result, Tomaz Kopitar was called up to be a pinch hitter as Nemecek's blisters made it rather uncomfortable to even swing the bat of the contact hitting pitcher. As a result, Nemecek was pulled from the batting order in favor of Kopitar and on the mound in favor of the closer, Danilo Tudjman. As a result, Nemecek has been referred to as questionable for the next two games against New Montreal States as well as match day 3's game against Lycrabon. With that injury, Nemecek will be deemed as the last relief pitcher to be used and can only be sent out if Anzic, Petrovic, and Damirovic have all been on the mound.

[Karditan]

Adair Sports

Us here at Adair Sports, based in the Karditani city of Moscolt, are proud to introduce our first internationally released product line:
PonySport!

The latest in Sport Technology is rolling off of our assembly lines, aimed at making various designed-for-human sports more accessible to ponykind! Our first supported sport will be baseball, to coincide with the start of the World Baseball Classic, currently being held by none other than the Equestrian States. The first item we'd like to showcase is a brilliant little invention called the Hoof Glove!

The hoof-glove is exactly what it sounds like; a baseball glove designed for use on a hoof. The apparatus begins with a metal ring lined with a comfortable yet sweat- and dirt-resistant material, that is tightened onto the foreleg an inch or two above the hoof via a bolt that can be spun with the mouth. Strong, yet flexible, rods extend from the ring to the glove itself, which rests underneath the hoof. When not in direct use, the glove flattens out in order to minimize the effect on the fielder's ability to run; when the glove is raised into the air, it inflates slightly to cushion the impact of the ball. The glove intelligently responds to the ball hitting the glove, closing partially on its own. The effectiveness of this features depends on the location the ball lands; the closer to the webbing the ball lands, the more forcefully the glove closes in. After a short delay to ensure the ball was firmly ensnared, the glove relaxes slightly to facilitate tossing the ball in the air for a follow-up hoof-strike. Below is a clip of the hoof-glove in action:

The camera pans over the Taeshani stadium, the sun shining bright beyond the center-field wall. The scoreboard indicates that it is the bottom of the first inning, the game currently scoreless. Adam Fisher is standing on second base, Kareem Mywane on first, and there is one out. Casey Brant delivers to Isaac Lewis; Lewis is far too late on the fastball. However, he gets a hold of the next fastball, and drives it high and deep to left field. Fisher starts to move towards third, then holds up when he notices Gale Wind running towards the wall like a madman. He seems to decide to play it safe and return to second; either the ball will leave the park and it won't be trouble, or he'll tag up. Simple. Wind is running like the wind despite the odd contraption on her front-left hoof; soon, she's reached the warning track, and a glance back doesn't indicate that the ball is going to run out of steam just yet. She leaps and hooks her front-right leg around the wall, sticking her front-left into the air. The ball comes down right in the webbing of her glove, which immediately clasps onto it as she lets go of the wall and lands on her hind legs. As soon as the umpire calls the out, she quickly moves the glove up, and the ball lifts into the air. She rears back, then brings her front-right hoof around and punches the ball with all her might. It soars through the air, coming down just in front of third basepony Short Stop, whose own hoof-glove closes on the ball while going down to apply the tag on Fisher. Brant does a small fist-pump at the incredible all-pony double-play that saved his hide; while the game would eventually fall out of the Wild Kards' grasp, that play was going to be all over top-ten reels for years to come.

[Songhia]

Songhia clinches late-game victory over New West Guiana
Disappointing start for star pitcher Sissoko

Twin River Park, New West Guiana
Anticipation was high as the Snake-Eaters entered their first-ever World Baseball Classic game, against veteran team New West Guiana. Songhia started all its best players - heavy-hitter Souleman Traoré of Sokassa Ton-Tigi, shortstop Mohammed Pelangana of the Bakumba Djelis, and change-up specialist pitcher Joseph Sissoko, two-time winner of Songhia's Best Pitcher and the cornerstone of the Snake-Eaters' Wagadou Baseball Conference victory in 2011. It was clear that Songhia was bringing its very best to the first day of competition.

NWG was no slouch, either - seasoned veteran Dale Larkson threw the game's first pitch, and Louis, Fish, and Rovoni were the Redhawk's star hitting squad. Both teams started the game by flexing their pitching muscle, and managed nothing but strikeouts in the first inning. The top of the second saw Sissoko's resolve beginning to weaken, however, and he gave up three hits, resulting in a run with two men left on base. The Snake-eaters couldn't provide a response at the bottom of the second, and the top of the third saw Jeff Fish bring in a lead-off home run for the Redhawks, raising the score to 0-2.

The fourth inning saw no action, though Allen Hindenworth, Jay Louis, and Jeff Fish all scored hits in the top half and Obeseré and Pelangana hit in the bottom. The top of the fifth saw a pitching substitution, as Sissoko, after giving up 12 hits and two runs, was taken off the field for relief pitcher Kassa Sundiata. It was a very nervous inning as Redhawks player Andrew Sims hit a double on his first pitch and spent most of the inning on third base, but the top of the fifth saw no runs.

The bottom of the fourth began with a quick strike-out for Snake-eater catcher Salif Sidibé, but Songhia's power-hitting trio Edward Siaré, Souleman Traoré, and designated hitter Seydou Sidibé all gave solid hits, and after a pop fly by Musuré, fan favorite Robbie Shoma came to bat and brought in a double RBI by sending the ball straight past 2nd base. Obeseré shot a quick grounder to first, but the ball was sent to second base quickly, stopping Sidibé and ending the inning - and it was once again anybody's game.

The sixth inning continued the momentum, with the Redhawks mustering nothing more than a hit from Sims. Pelangana scored another hit for the Snake-eaters, but the inning ended with no action and a man left on base. The top of the seventh saw more desperate fighting from the Redhawks, but after an early out for George Dani, NWG was quickly knocked out with a double-play over second base.

The bottom of the seventh saw a lead-off double from Edward Siaré, Songhia's brave second-baseman and one of Sokassa Ton-Tigi's outstanding players. The next batter struck out, but designated hittter Seydou Sidibé showed his worth and advanced Siaré to third base. Cheick Musuré tied up several fouls on a 3-2 count, but finally scored a hit and sent Siaré home for his second run of the game, putting Songhia in the lead.

The eighth inning saw no real action, as neither team could bring home a run and no player passed first base. The Redhawks' last chance was the top of the ninth, but despite excellent batting from Hindenworth and Daneils, the inning and the game ended on Jay Louis giving up a ground-out to first.

After the game, head coach Mohammed Kouyaté gave the following remarks: "I feel extremely glad that we have won today, and the Redhawks are an excellent team and we only beat them because we were playing at our very best. Cutting Sissoko was a hard decision, but I don't think he'll stay down. Every pitcher has the occassional slump, and with stakes like these it's only natural."

[Zwangzug]

The Kerlagrad Courier
Backyard reflections

The beginning of any baseball competition should be an exciting time. The weather is--well, the weather can vary, the sun is--that would depend on whether it's a dome, I guess, the nationalists are singing and/or the birds are descending upon the field at the end of the game to eat everyone's leftover junk.

Yet, the start of a new season or World Baseball Classic can also be a time to look back on the past, and remember how things have changed. When players have aged, it's an obvious excuse, but even seemingly young and fresh talent also sheds its light on the so-called "old days." Today, I speak of Backyard Sports, and their band of prodigies taking the field at Big City Stadium, in the nondescript "Metropolis"--a far cry from the alleys and sandlots where they may have gotten their starts, and certainly a step up in terms of capacity from even Parks Department Field #2 and their melodious announcers (meanwhile the less said about the situation back in Zwischen, the better).

Make no mistake, Angela Delvecchio showed great heart in a 4-2 loss to the Zebras; after allowing four runs through the first four innings, she eventually moved to left field before coming back to pitch a perfect ninth. But one wonders what toll this will take on her arm in the future, as she continues to develop?

The home team's offense was potent enough at first. Pete Wheeler (that's his surname, he does not literally wheel around the bases) led off with a line drive to right, which he stretched into a double. Kenny Kawaguchi (who should be nicknamed Wheeler, because he does) worked the count full, giving Wheeler time to steal third, before striking out on a nice breaking ball from Peter Butel-Tiand. Stephanie Morgan, though she approached the plate with confidence in her unbalanced stance, could only pop up back to the mound for the second out. But up next was the mighty cleanup hitter, Pablo Sanchez, and after pulling a couple fouls he launched a Butel-Tiand fastball over the seats, making Wheeler's hard work count for little as he got to pace in. Kiesha [sic] Phillips eventually fouled out to left to end what proved to be the hosts' only scoring threat.

Still, the game raised more questions than answers about where these bright young things can fit in. Morgan is a fountain of insight, worthy of becoming a manager or announcer someday, but will GMs be able to see past her worrying bubblegum habits? And what of Mikey Thomas and his health concerns--can he afford to get the treatment he needs, or will over-the-counter cold medications be regulated on suspicion they might lead to performance-enhancing substances? Can Dante Robinson continue his varied diets, or will nutritionists demand he fall in line? Finally, what to make of Kawaguchi? (Kenny, that is.) While the measures he's taken to achieve access to top-level sport are impressive and indeed inspirational, what would happen if his wheelchair allowed him to gain "unnatural" speed? Where do we draw the line?

Perhaps these questions cannot yet be grappled with. For now, we, and the victorious Zebras, can enjoy another day in the sun, or city lights.

[ViZion]

ViZion Daily
Sports Page - C1

ViZion Doomed By First Inning Grand Slam


Starter Patty Jones After The Game

By: Tom Hesh

Western Cuba - That one pitch. Patty "Flames" Jones wants that one pitch back. A belt-high, 96 mile an hour fastball, no movement, to Karolek Tikhvinsky. Four batters into the game, and it was 4-0 Western Cuba. After that, Patty settled down into a groove, at one point laying to rest six straight batters with five strikeouts. But alas, that one pitch was what made the different.

Take out that grand slam, and the team wins 4-3 and has a solid game one against Western Cuba. Hollier did his usual, collecting four hits. His sight is set high - he wants to no less than equal his .800 average from World Baseball Classic, and he's off to a great start today. Richardson nearly gave the Gamers the win late in the game, but a gem of a catch by Vassi Rasputin robbed the power-hitting third baseman of the game-changer as the athletic outfielder tumbled over the outfield wall, and still game up with the ball.

Tomorrow, Jorge Kleon goes up against Kerblaekistan and their starter, (Justin King?), at home. This should be an excellent game! Lets go Gamers!

[Ko-oren]

Free South Califas               0 0 0 2 0 0 0 0 1 0 3  6
Ko-oren                          0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 2 0 0  3

--reader submitted column---
Here's how you can see the old ones are getting too old

So years and years of results getting better have made us spoiled. That's the argument fans get all the time from all kinds of athletes and coaches from any sport imaginable (including, but not limited to curling, Bo-Taoshi and Chess Boxing). Now, it's baseball's turn. Yesterday was the first match of the 25th WBC, where Ko-oren took on Free South Califas, a match that can easily be seen as the biggest rivalry we have, given the history of the sport in our country.

To those that are unaware: baseball has been very small in Ko-oren for a long while. After it took off, the development was enormous, and now baseball is the second most popular sport in Ko-oren. Right after the take-off, coaches and players from Free South Califas came to Ko-oren to educate us more about the sport that they've played for so long, that they know much more about, etc. It really did help to raise the bar in this country, and now even the AIBC is located in Ko-oren (Speaking of which, the 10th BCCC was just finished)!

Now the two countries are considered to be in different regions, but the fire is still warm. The younger Ko-orenite players have shown that they are ready to play for the country competitively, and still the old players are called. But here's the thing with old players: they can't keep up for too long anymore. They are okay for nine innings. They even tied it up in the ninth inning yesterday (2-1 after eight innings, 3-3 after nine). So then the clock starts ticking. Ten innings: 3-3. No problem. Eleventh inning starts, and FSC makes three runs! Three runs! If there's a bad way to start your tournament: there it is.

---

Do you want your column to appear in the KSN too? Submit a column of not more than 300 words (longer will be ignored/redacted) and hope it will be published! Your columns could also appear in your local edition: Northeast, East, Northwest/Center/West or South.

[New West Guiana]

World Baseball Classic 25 Pre-View

Shadowbourne (33): Though we've never met them before but they've been around for two classics and have had strong showings in both and have showed much promise. (W/L)

West Guiana (18): Us, our pre-view is a bit different than previous classics we've lost some truly great players so our best hopes would that we're able to get back into the playoffs. Because of our losses on the roaster this time around it will be a bit more challenging, but under the direction of Ray we'll keep our hopes high but just barely.

Darmen (4): I do believe we've crossed paths before, not only in the World Baseball Classic but also in other competitions. We know them more than we did before, but like every opponent just when you think you know how you'll beat them they'll pull something else out and blindside you. (L/W

Elykyellek & Songhia: Two new teams to the line up, like many would expect they both should be easy pick ups but one should always know not to expect everything will go as you planned. (W/W) (W/W)

Birolika (68): They made their first appearance last time and had a some what good showing, but like many others like us who didn't live up to expectations they'll put the peddle to the meatle and work hard to make it look as threats. (W/W)

Predication: 8-2

Not the way to start

Just like WBC 24 West Guiana did not start on the right foot, not one bit what so ever a hard to swallow to newbie Songhia. The losse obliviously upset Coach Louse a great deal to the point that afterwards which he is known to talk to reporters he simply ran off the field and refused to comment. This is the second time in a row that West Guiana had lost to an unranked team in the opening week. And just like the first time we had the momentum and we let it slip through our hands, just when we thought we'd won.

Two times in a row losing to an un-ranked team can really dash ones hopes at achieving greater accomplishments. So far the Silver addition to the World baseball Classic is looking like the twenty-fourth edition. Where we ended up at 6-4 and missed out on the playoffs. The only reason why West Guiana will never be seen as a true force in the baseball world is simply because we don't follow one successful competition with another. We wax and wane way to often we're not a real threat just simply another squad that got lucky to be where they are, maybe a little luck. No we're not ever going to be a great squad of we don't get out act together. We're not like the other teams in the top twenty, really they've been consistent time in and time out unlike us. We've only got to where we are by pure luck and nothing more, until the team can prove otherwise we'll remain nothing more than a bunch of lucky amateurs playing with the "big boys".


Group 2

West Guiana                      0 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 0  2
Songhia                          0 0 0 0 2 0 1 0 X  3

  Group 2                             Pld    W   L    RF   RA   RD    Win %
1  Elykyellek                        1    1   0     5    1   +4    1.000
2  Birolika                          1    1   0     3    1   +2    1.000
3  Songhia                           1    1   0     3    2   +1    1.000
4  West Guiana                       1    0   1     2    3   −1    0.000
5  Shadowbourne                      1    0   1     1    3   −2    0.000
6  Darmen                            1    0   1     1    5   −4    0.000

[Equestrian States]

The Pony Republic of Equestrian States
The 25th World Baseball Classic Visitors’ Guide

HOST CITY: CANTERLOT

THE CITY

Canterlot is the capital city of the Equestrian States and one of its oldest. Located on the steep slopes of Mt. Harmony and the surrounding lands, Canterlot has evolved over time into a burgeoning metropolis that reflects the qualities the nation that houses its government in the city. The capital’s traditional sophisticated architecture has been almost seamlessly blended with the more modern styles to make it perhaps the most visually-appealing cities in the Equestrian States.

Founded by the first wave of equine settlers that came to what is now the Equestrian States from Magical Equestria over a millennium ago, Canterlot was originally named New Canterlot as inspired by the capital of the settlers’ origin. However, when the then-colony was cut off from its mother country, the memories of the old Canterlot began to fade and the name was shortened to simply Canterlot. Contact with Magical Equestria after the Equestrian States emerged from isolation in the northernmost parts of the Pony Lands resulted in the existence of two Canterlots and the Equestrian Parliament briefly considered renaming the city again out of respect for its older cousin, but then decided against it.

By far, the best place to visit in Canterlot is Harmony Castle. One of the oldest structures in the Equestrian States, the castle was constructed by unicorn builders as part of the original colonization effort. Currently home to the royal family of the Equestrian States, Harmony Castle also houses Parliament’s formal meeting chambers and is a regular stop on most tourists’ stays in Canterlot. The castle is open to tours most days of the week, tickets for which should be acquired no less than one week prior to the tour date on the Castle’s official webpage.

THE VENUE

ROYAL CANTERLOT STADIUM

Location: Canterlot
Capacity: 55,000
Tennants: Canterlot Royalty
Will host: Semifinal and Championship Series games
Located just several blocks from the massive Equestria Dome (home stadium of the Equestrian national hoofball team), Royal Canterlot Stadium is the largest baseball-only sports venue in the country. Although baseball is not the most popular sport in the Equestrian States, the stadium often draws near-sellout crowds throughout the National Equestrian Baseball League’s season due largely to the excellent quality of the field and the experience of going to a ballgame.

RP Cutoff for Match Day 2

[Sicoutimont]

(OOC: Just missed the cutoff....)

Les Royales WBC XXV Roster and Information

Les Royales return to the WBC boasting the current best club team in the world, that would be BCCC champion Ile Perrot Epee. But, can the national team get that same success? Here is the roster of the Royales!

Batting Order

1-Pedro Santana-SS-St-Simeon Mets
2-Alfonso Soriano-3B-Baie-Eternite Cardinals
3-Boullion Carvier-1B-Ile Perrot Epee
4-Victor Santana-RF-St-Simeon Mets
5-Loic St-Ignace-CF-Ile Perrot Epee
6-Jose Colognon-C-St-Simeon Mets
7-Martin Vauton-2B-Ile Perrot Epee
8-Jaeg Nordstrom-LF-Ile Perrot Epee
9-Francis Boullion-DH-St-Simeon Mets

Les Royales use the DH rule. If not used at a different stadium, the usual batting pitcher will be Fidel Sanchez.

Pitching Rotation
1-Fidel Sanchez-LHP-St-Simeon Mets
2-Yves Canton-RHP-Ile Perrot Epee
3-Javier Perreois-RHP-Baie-Eternite Cardinals
4-Carlos Santa Maria-LHP-Lac-Drouin Tigres
5-Trent Davis-LHP-Ile Perrot Epee

Bullpen
Claude Perrault-Closer-St-Simeon Mets
Fernard Dantes-Closer-Baie-Eternite Cardinals
Ingham Reginald-Closer-Lac-Drouin Tigres
Jacques Georges-Closer-Ile Perrot Epee

Coaching Staff
Manager: Maurice Sorotone-St-Simeon Mets
1B Coach: Loic Gaerns-Ile Perrot Epee
2B Coach: Albert Miths-Ile Perrot Epee
3B Coach: Alexandre Rouls-Ile Perrot Epee

Information
My opponent, if they RP first, may do the following:
Choose my runscorers: Yes
Choose my lineup: Yes
Follow my pitching rotation: Yes
Godmod scoring events: Yes
RP injuries to my players: Yes
Godmod injuries to my players: No
Eject my players: Yes
Godmod other events: Yes
Use DH at home: Yes

The team is dominated by the aforementioned Epee and St-Simeon Mets roster players. Key players Victor Santana, Boullion Carvier, and soon retiring Francis Boullion hope to come up big in the Equestrian States. The home stadium is Field PowerEternite, in St-Simeon. It is home of the St-Simeon Mets, and also hosted the BCCC finals 2 seasons ago. The stadium is located 20 minutes outside St-Simeon, in the subburb of Baie-Nord.

The first games have been played! Les Royales were drawn into a group featuring the following teams:
Karditan (28)
Sicoutimont (19)
Parsee Mizuhashi (UR)
Powersith (49)
Rodard (UR)
Taeshan (7)

The first game for Les Royales featured the Sicoutians going up against unranked Rodard, in Rodard at the Ridge Park field in Jeffton. The game started good for Les Royales, with Victor Santana driving home Pedro Santana for the first score of the game. Les Royales wouldn't give up the lead, scoring 1 time more in the 4th inning and 2 more times in the 5th. The Prospectors would come back with 3 runs in the 6th and 7th
but it would not be enough, as Les Royales win their first game of the tournament.

FULL SCORESHEET:

1st Inning-SIC RUN-P. Santana, RBI Victor Santana
4th Inning-SIC HOME RUN-Francis Boullion
5th Inning-SIC RUN-Victor Santana, RBI Loic St-Ignace- Loic St-Ignace, RBI Jose Colognon
6th Inning-ROD RUN-Mike Woods, RBI Veran Parks
7th Inning-ROD RUN-Tyrone Owens, RBI Teron Scotts- Kenny Smith, RBI Mike Woods

Tune in again for Sicoutimont's next game, against Karditan at Field PowerEternite!

[Saugeais]

Awesome Adrichem Near Perfect
by Finn Ferguson, National Journal

Saugeais                         0 0 3  0 0 0  0 0 0   3
Grandterre                       0 0 0  0 0 0  0 0 0   0

W - Adrichem (1-0)
L - Kohler (0-1)

Grier Adrichem can only describe his performance as a "monumental relief" after throwing a two hitter at Grandterre yesterday. After his performance in the previous World Baseball Classic, the 32 year old right-hander from Bugny has every right to make that claim, after being the second worse starter on the stat sheet. Not today, however, as Adrichem fanned 11 batters and gave up 2 walks in conjuction with the previously mentioned two hits surrendered.

Adrichem brought the heat early, as the first time through the Grandterre lineup, he struck out 4 of them, all on third strike fastballs. Most of the ground ball outs that were credited to the team were thanks to Adrichem's low target in the strike zone with both his curveball and slider. Over the course of the next run through the lineup, Adrichem's delivery began to fade slightly, and began to throw more balls around the strike zone. Some Grandterran players flailed after these pitches, further adding to his strikeout total, but this lead to his first walk of the game, coming in the 5th inning against Grandterran third baseman Xavier Vasquez. In the sixth inning, Adrichem surrendered his first hit of the game, a single to left from outfielder Guillaume Martin. Adrichem regained his control through the final three innings, even though he record another walk at hit in the 8th inning. "I told coach [Claude] Gagné that it wasn't a worry, and that I can take these guys out," Adrichem said to the media, and he delivered with the next batter, Phillip Park, grounding into an inning ending double play.

Offensively, the Rangers had their boon period in the third inning, scoring all three of their runs there. Pip Joubert led off with adouble to the left centerfield area, but catcher Marco Bishop followed that was a sac fly to right, moving Pip to third. Marek Atterbury decided to be cheeky with the Grandterran pitcher, as he layed a bunt down the first base line. Pip charged home hard, and Marek, at 32, still had the speed to beat anyone in a footrace. This led to confusion among the Grandterran players as to who should play the ball, resulting in everyone being safe and the Rangers up 1-0. Garrett Garner next up walked, and Winston Chapman delivered a solid swing on a full count, driving the ball off the right field wall and letting Marek and Garrett score, with Winston holding at second. There were a few more hits scattered throughout the game, but none leading to any run production.

The Rangers are off to a good start, and will travel to Slembana for the second game of the group stages. Saugeais will follow that contest with their first match at Stade de Saugeais, when they host Thatius.

[Kinzar]

(Hoped to get this in before cutoff but the real world didn't cooperate)

The bumper to bumper traffic on Interstate 101 became infuriating. What was normally a 30 minute drive for the Anderson family from Keeneland to Hudson now seemed like it was going to take 3 hours. Fortunately, they, like all the cars in front of them and behind them had left early. It was only 10:40am, and the game wouldn’t start until 7pm. Time wasn’t the issue, the Andersons, like everyone else, just want to be there early to take advantage of all the pre-game festivities. The 37-year old Shawn and 32-year old wife Caitlyn were in the front, while their two kids, Matt (9 years old) and Stephanie (7 years old) sat in the back. The youngsters were getting relentless, and Shawn was becoming more and more annoyed by the stop-and-go traffic.

“BEEEEP!!” blasted Shawn on his car horn, if nothing else, to take out some frustration, knowing it wouldn’t make the cars in front of him move any faster. Caitlyn leaned over, kiss her husband on the cheek and told him to settle down, and told him to start telling the kids the story of the World Baseball Classic and why this is such a big deal for Kinzar once again. Shawn had recited the story several times, but began once again. For him, it was a frustrating tale, because he wishes he could have seen Kinzar play in the World Baseball Classic when he was younger. He told them that the players he watched when he was a kid would sometimes remark about how they wished they could have played in those earlier editions while Kinzar existed in isolation. Shawn Anderson played baseball through college, but was never quite good enough to play professionally, and as he recited the story this time, he chose to do it with the story of his collegiate coach, who played professionally and would have been good enough to represent Kinzar, but never had the chance. The kids were bored with the story, but it helped pass the time as the car gradually inched its way closer to the stadium.

“Daddy, do you think I could ever play in the World Baseball Classic?” Matthew said. His father then took a few more minutes to give him words of encouragement. Matthew’s smiled beamed from ear to ear.

“Daddy, how about me?” asked 7-year old Stephanie. Her older brother was quick to jump in and declare that “baseball is boys and softball is for girls. They just let you play Little League now but when you get older you have to play softball.”

Stephanie pouted, and as Shawn was ready to try and say something a little nicer then that, her mother Caitlyn jumped in, to everyone’s surprise. “Absolutely sweetheart. Two of the greatest nations that ever played in the World Baseball Classic used an all-female lineup. Between them, they have won the Classic seven times. Your father doesn’t know it, but my mother used to watch those games. She was a big fan of those nations and wish they were still around to play these Classics today.” Shawn looked at his wife, surprised that she was aware of that history, as Caitlyn continued, “There’s nothing you can’t do Stephanie. Even on the nations that aren’t all female, like Zwangzug, there is a strong female presence. If I’m not mistaken, there’s a woman on Quebec’s roster for tonight.”

Stephanie smiled wider then her brother did before. “But we don’t have any. I wish we did,” she did.

“Kinzar is making strides, Steph, to become acclimated to the rest of the world. Seeing women be successful will just be the tip of the iceberg. There is a tremendous opportunity out there, and President Spencer will realize that. He is doing great things for our country, and I think soon we will see women in the KBL and even representing us in the World Baseball Classic one day.” Mom replied.

“And that will be when we do better, right?” Stephanie joked.

“Exactly.” Caitlyn answered as the traffic jam began to break up, and the headed into the stadium parking lot. “That will be history, much like the history we will witness tonight.”

Upon arrival at the ballpark, Shawn and Caitlyn took their kids to all of the fanfare items. There were many Kinzite professional players that are not on the national team signing autographs in various areas, and all of the rides and contests had lines about as long as the traffic jam as they had just been in. They made the most of it, and Shawn did well on the “Name the Winner of this World Baseball Classic” Trivia contest, matching 20 winners with the correct Classic they won, and then got 18 of 24 correct on the “Name The Host” contest. Shawn thought that would give him bragging rights, only to find his wife scored 22, and 21, respectively. Since when was she so smart about all of this stuff. After having a late afternoon meal, the team headed to their seats, which Shawn was able to get 8-rows deep behind the home dugout. There, the kids got autographs from all the players. Out of the blue, young Stephanie asked reserve outfielder Daniel Cheevers if he thought girls would ever play in the KBL. Cheevers smiled and told her “one day they’ll be getting your autograph on this field! It will happen!” Stephanie smiled, and now had her new favorite player; even if he played for Parkersburg.

Game time inched closer. History, inched closer.

[Equestrian States]

World Baseball Classic 25 - Match Day 2 Results

Group 1

Raxillion                        0 0 0 0 1 0 1 0 1  3
Ko-oren                          0 0 0 0 0 0 0 2 0  2

Central North America            1 0 6 1 0 0 1 1 0 10
Free South Califas               0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0  1

Byfugland                        1 3 0 0 0 1 0 0 0  5
Saintland                        0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0  1

  Group 1                             Pld    W   L    RF   RA   RD    Win %
1  Central North America             2    2   0    19    3  +16    1.000
2  Raxillion                         2    2   0     7    3   +4    1.000
3  Byfugland                         2    1   1     6    5   +1    0.500
4  Free South Califas                2    1   1     7   13   -6    0.500
5  Ko-oren                           2    0   2     5    9   -4    0.000
6  Saintland                         2    0   2     3   14  -11    0.000

Group 2

Birolika                         0 0 4 0 0 0 0 2 0  6
Elykyellek                       0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0  1

Songhia                          0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0  0
Darmen                           0 4 0 0 2 0 0 0 X  6

Shadowbourne                     0 0 1 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0  2
West Guiana                      0 1 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 2  4

  Group 2                             Pld    W   L    RF   RA   RD    Win %
1  Birolika                          2    2   0     9    2   +7    1.000
2  Elykyellek                        2    1   1     6    7   -1    0.500
3  Darmen                            2    1   1     7    5   +2    0.500
4  Songhia                           2    1   1     3    8   -5    0.500
5  West Guiana                       2    1   1     6    5   +1    0.500
6  Shadowbourne                      2    0   2     3    7   -4    0.000

Group 3

Bloodbath Generation             0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 1  2
Quebecois Acadiana               0 0 0 1 1 0 0 1 X  3

Super-Llamaland                  0 0 0 0 0 2 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0  3
Cyborg Holland                   0 0 0 1 0 0 0 1 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1  4

Skeckoa                          0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0  1
Yesopalitha                      1 5 0 0 1 0 0 0 X  7

  Group 3                             Pld    W   L    RF   RA   RD    Win %
1  Quebecois Acadiana                2    2   0     8    6   +2    1.000
2  Cyborg Holland                    2    1   1     8    8    0    0.500
3  Super-Llamaland                   2    1   1     5    5    0    0.500
4  Yesopalitha                       2    1   1     8    3   +5    0.500
5  Skeckoa                           2    1   1     7   11   -4    0.500
6  Bloodbath Generation              2    0   2     6    9   -3    0.000

Group 4

Taeshan                          1 0 0 0 0 0 1 1 0 0  3
Powersith                        3 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1  4

Rodard                           0 0 0 3 1 0 0 0 1  5
Parsee Mizuhashi                 0 2 1 0 0 0 0 3 X  6

Karditan                         2 3 0 0 0 0 3 0 0 0  8
Sicoutimont                      1 0 1 1 0 3 0 0 2 1  9

  Group 4                             Pld    W   L    RF   RA   RD    Win %
1  Powersith                         2    2   0    12    7   +5    1.000
2  Sicoutimont                       2    2   0    13   11   +2    1.000
3  Taeshan                           2    1   1     6    5   +1    0.500
4  Parsee Mizuhashi                  2    1   1    10   13   -3    0.500
5  Rodard                            2    0   2     8   10   -2    0.000
6  Karditan                          2    0   2     9   12   -3    0.000

Group 5

Aardenland                       0 8 0 1 0 1 1 0 0 11
Komodo Dragon                    0 0 0 0 2 0 1 1 1  5

Estope                           0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0  0
Lycrabon                         0 1 0 1 0 0 0 2 X  4

The Serbian Empire               0 0 0 0 1 1 0 0 1  3
New Montreal States              0 0 1 0 0 4 0 0 X  5

  Group 5                             Pld    W   L    RF   RA   RD    Win %
1  New Montreal States               2    2   0     9    5   +4    1.000
2  The Serbian Empire                2    1   1    10    9   +1    0.500
3  Aardenland                        2    1   1    15   12   +3    0.500
4  Komodo Dragon                     2    1   1    15   14   +1    0.500
5  Lycrabon                          2    1   1     7   10   -3    0.500
6  Estope                            2    0   2     2    8   -6    0.000

Group 6

Grandterre                       1 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0  2
The Alphabet Letters             4 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 X  4

Michael VII                      0 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 0  2
Thatius                          1 0 2 0 0 0 0 0 X  3

Saugeais                         0 0 0 0 0 2 0 0 2  4
Slembana                         0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0  1

  Group 6                             Pld    W   L    RF   RA   RD    Win %
1  Saugeais                          2    2   0     7    1   +6    1.000
2  Thatius                           2    2   0    10    8   +2    1.000
3  Slembana                          2    1   1     6    4   +2    0.500
4  The Alphabet Letters              2    1   1    10    9   +1    0.500
5  Grandterre                        2    0   2     2    7   -5    0.000
6  Michael VII                       2    0   2     2    8   -6    0.000

Group 7

Tyneala                          1 0 1 0 0 1 0 0 0 1  4
Equestrian States                0 0 0 1 0 1 0 1 0 0  3

New Matawan                      3 2 0 1 0 0 3 0 0  9
Schmiegelland                    0 0 3 0 0 0 0 0 1  4

Strawbee                         0 0 1 4 0 2 2 0 0  9
Kintratar                        1 2 0 0 0 0 4 0 0  7

  Group 7                             Pld    W   L    RF   RA   RD    Win %
1  Strawbee                          2    2   0    14   10   +4    1.000
2  Kintratar                         2    1   1    12   12    0    0.500
3  Tyneala                           2    1   1     7    8   -1    0.500
4  Equestrian States                 2    1   1    14    6   +8    0.500
5  New Matawan                       2    1   1    12    9   +3    0.500
6  Schmiegelland                     2    0   2     6   20  -14    0.000

Group 8

Qazox                            1 2 0 0 0 2 0 0 1  6
Pretty Awesome Persons           1 0 1 0 0 0 2 0 0  4

The Royal Kingdom of Quebec      2 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0  3
Kinzar                           0 0 1 2 0 0 0 1 X  4

Milchama                         0 1 0 1 0 0 0 0 0  2
Mapletish                        1 1 0 0 0 1 0 1 X  4

  Group 8                             Pld    W   L    RF   RA   RD    Win %
1  Kinzar                            2    2   0    12    5   +7    1.000
2  Mapletish                         2    2   0     9    3   +6    1.000
3  Qazox                             2    2   0    13    8   +5    1.000
4  Milchama                          2    0   2     6   11   -5    0.000
5  The Royal Kingdom of Quebec       2    0   2     4    9   -5    0.000
6  Pretty Awesome Persons            2    0   2     6   14   -8    0.000

Group 9

The Sova Empire                  3 1 0 1 0 0 0 0 0  5
Thrilledge                       0 0 2 0 0 0 0 0 0  2

Backyard Sports                  1 0 0 0 4 0 0 0 0  5
Lymantatia                       0 1 2 0 0 0 0 1 0  4

Vaugania                         0 0 1 1 3 0 1 1 0  7
Zwangzug                         0 0 1 0 0 1 1 1 1  5

  Group 9                             Pld    W   L    RF   RA   RD    Win %
1  Vaugania                          2    2   0    13    8   +5    1.000
2  Zwangzug                          2    1   1     9    9    0    0.500
3  Backyard Sports                   2    1   1     7    8   -1    0.500
4  Lymantatia                        2    1   1     7    5   +2    0.500
5  The Sova Empire                   2    1   1     8    8    0    0.500
6  Thrilledge                        2    0   2     2    8   -6    0.000

Group 10

The Priory of St. Luc            1 0 0 1 0 0 1 0 0  3
Western Cuba                     0 1 0 3 2 2 0 1 X  9

Kerblaekistan                    0 0 0 0 1 3 0 0 0  4
ViZion                           0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 1  2

Maklohi Vai                      0 1 3 0 2 0 0 0 0  6
Allinlia                         0 0 0 0 2 0 0 0 0  2

  Group 10                            Pld    W   L    RF   RA   RD    Win %
1  Western Cuba                      2    2   0    16    7   +9    1.000
2  Maklohi Vai                       2    2   0    14    6   +8    1.000
3  Kerblaekistan                     2    2   0    12    5   +7    1.000
4  ViZion                            2    0   2     6   11   -5    0.000
5  Allinlia                          2    0   2     5   14   -9    0.000
6  The Priory of St. Luc             2    0   2     7   17  -10    0.000

[Aardenland]

Aardenland Records First Victory

Aardenland outslugs the Komodo Dragons to take the second game of the classic, 11-5

GAME SUMMARY

Clearly not deterred by their loss in the first game, Aardenland's bats came alive to wallop the Komodo team. Chief among the sluggers was Desmond de Waal, who slugged three home runs, including a three-run home run in the second which was the first of three consectutive home runs hit that inning. (Translated from Dutch) "Their starter was not very skilled," said de Waal in a postgame interview. "That pitch I hit outside the park was one of the easiest pitches I've been thrown in awhile. The bullpen was not as bad, I suppose, but with an eight run handicap on them, they were really shaky, and that gave me a lot of confidence in my following plate appearances." Iddo Dietrich, the starting pitcher, pitched a very good game, allowing only three (two of them earned) runs in seven innings, recording ten strikeouts and walking none. Dietrich also hit a bunt single with two outs to start an eight run rally in the second inning. "With a tough game, I always pitch my best," said Dietrich. "With an eight run lead, I become bored without mercy." Ernie Porter will take the mound tomorrow, when Aardenland returns home to face New Montreal's team, the Expos, who are as of yet undefeated in this World Baseball Classic.

Second Inning

Aardenland: With two outs, Iddo Dietrich hit a bunt single to third. Zef Veek singled to right field, moving Dietrich to third. Veek stole second. Sally Karlsson doubled, scoring Dietrich and Veek. Silver Wouda walked. Karlsson stole third base, Wouda stole second. Desmond de Waal hit a three-run home run into center field. Odessa Kroon hit a solo home run into right field. Ricky Bruijn hit a solo home run into left field. Crijn Legierse singled into center field. Barry Rillo doubled to left field, scoring Legierse. Aardenland leads, 8-0

Fourth Inning

Aardenland: Desmond de Waal hit a solo home run to right field. Aardenland leads, 9-0

Sixth Inning

Aardenland: Barry Rillo hit a solo home run to right field. Aardenland leads, 10-2

Seventh Inning

Aardenland: Desmond de Waal hit a solo home run to right-center field. Aardenland leads, 11-2

AARDENLAND WINS 11-5

Player of the Game:

DESMOND DE WAAL -
Hit three of Aardenland's six home runs, driving in five runs.

[The Sova Empire]

Starter' s folly: TSE records upset first victory against Thrilledge as both starters struggle.

"Fil Pepsi has pitched a 1-2 count with 2 outs in the bottom of the 9th. Can he deliver history against one of the top 10 teams in the world, Thrilledge? He winds up, and the pitch...SWING AND A MISS!!!!! THE SOVA EMPIRE HAS DEFEATED A TITAN TODAY!!!!!!!" exclaims Luigi Empemba, longtime announcer for baseball games around TSE. The same emotion could be felt around TSE, as the relatively small theocracy has made its presence known on the international stage.

Coach Greg met with his players before the game in the locker room. "Guys, don't worry about the score today" (making sure he pronounced the "to" in "today" so his catcher Taday doesn't feel bad) "We are in hostile territory today; expect all away games to be this way. Thrilledge is the 10th best team out there, and we don't even have a ranking. Treat this match like a practice game, since it will be unlikely if we even come close to victory. Alright guys, Halleluja on 3. 1, 2, 3. HALLELUJA!"

Having the pressure off of the team seemed to help, as 5 runs came in the first 4 innings. However, Fil Pepsi, who arguably cost the Vaugainia game, was sent in relief in the 3rd after Tammarah gave up a 2-run HR. Fil was as cool as his name, and didn't let up a single run against the powerhouse Thrilledge offense. TSE's offense however, was also cooled after the 4th, partly because of the inexperienced players thinking of the prospects of actually winning a game, and partly due to seeing every single pitcher in the bullpen from Thrilledge. TSE offense just could not "figure out" the pitcher in time to score.

As wonderful as the win was, Coach Greg was quick to try and get the players off of cloud nine. "Remember, tommorow's game will be against the 15th ranked Zwanzug. I did some scouting, and they are brutal to people who aren't experienced. Their pitchers can throw a slider right around your hip, and their defense is top notch. You guys are gonna have to work incerdibly hard if we are going to come close to winning tommorow. Congratulations tonight though, celebrate while you can."

Scoring plays:
1st INNING:
With runners on 2nd and 3rd, Ida Kno lines a shot into the right corner, reaching third standing up and scoring 2. 2-0
Ida Givadurn pops a curveball 399 feet to centerfielder’s glove (CF is about 400 feet deep), sending Ida Kno home. 3-0
2nd INNING:
Igor Bcuz sends a fastball into the RF seats with no one on. 4-0
3rd INNING:
Blastings Thrilledge bounces a ground rule double with the bases loaded to plate 2. 4-2
4th INNING:
Gary Roffeld shows off his acrobatic skills from the Vaugainia game and avoids the tag for an inside the park HR. 5-2

[Taeshan]

"Well that was an ok first two games."

"Yeah, beating Karditan then losing to Powersith, interesting run of events."

"Yeah we should easily advance through the group stage and if we don't, we should be taken out back and shot."

"Yeah if Taeshan cant own at Baseball, then the world is all but over because they are great."

"Taeshan is Uber alle."

"You know it."

"The Powersith loss could really hurt later, but to be fair every team loses eventually."

"Yeah."

"Lets hope they can turn it around."

"Yeah, work to do."

"Need to get better and work on stuff."