World Baseball Classic 54 (IC thread)

by **Banija** » Tue Apr 12, 2022 1:06 pm

@BanijaBaseball Winners of Group 7! Join us in Herzegovina City for the home closer, as Faraba Conateh takes the mound to try and carry this team to the postseason on a high note!

@AllBanijaSportsMagazine A win against Norrhem will guarantee Banija can finish no lower than fifth in the knockout stage seedings... But a loss for any of the 8-1 teams in front of them could bump them behind Banija. W2W4: Ranoria v. Camcity, Kriegiersien v. South Americanastan, and Tikariot v. Mylderm. Rooting chart? Camcity, Kriegiersien, and Tikariot. Any of those win, with a Banijan win as well, and that will give us a top 4 seed for the Classic.

@AllBanijaSportsMagazine We have played over 500 WBC games, and last night's 21-5 win was the most runs the Banijan baseball has ever scored in WBC competition. Banija's bats were "on fire", as the team scored 14 runs in innings 2-4. The team had 6 HRs, as the long ball played a big role in their blowout.

@OusmanKakay Hey Herzegovina City! Make sure to get to the ballpark early! I'll be there rooting on my successor as manager, Isaac Oladipo, and the national team. First 5,000 fans will receive my bobblehead! #BanijanBaseball

by **South Newlandia** » Tue Apr 12, 2022 1:47 pm

Disclaimers:
* this project would not be possible without the efforts from Super-Llamaland. This RP you see on screen right now was written by Super-Llamaland. He also set up a twitter account to live-tweet the below on the LPB Discord Server. It was probably better that way. Llama put a lot of effort into this. Yadda yadda background work, you get the gist, but this is still very much a Super-Llamaland RP. He asked me to post it because he currently does not have the time to. Please do grade accordingly.
* this RP series may, on occasion, mention numbers about your players. Feel free to ignore them if you don’t like them; but keep in mind that scoring rates are lower in the LPB, with roughly 10% fewer runs than in the MLB.

The trade deadline – Part (depending on where you start counting)

LPB UPDATES ✓

With there now being less than 48 hours until the Llamaphant Pro Baseball Trade Deadline, let's take a final look at the standings after 120 games:

Who will trade for some help in order to make a playoff push, and who'll trade away assets for the future? Find out by following @LPBUpdates!

I had to cut out the images below because, turns out, the forums don't like it when you put >100 images in a single post. Who knew? I guess you can pretend they're still there if you want to

Opinion Piece by an Elephant Valley United fan blog (this was written by SNL btw)

Well, that’s weird. And potentially concerning. Hillary had said multiple times that she wants to compete for titles, that she’s not looking to play for a bottom-feeding team that’s nowhere near contention. And, let’s be honest here; that’s just what United is right now. We’re 53-67. We’re not making the playoffs, with or without her. So, going into the deadline, I was sure she was leaving town, to South Falls or Nikcoro, maybe the Lions, or possibly the Owls if they got desperate; but she’s still here. I don’t understand why? I mean, I’m not complaining, but the trade deadline is the perfect moment to get value out of a player. We’re not going to get back as much in the off-season, and it looks like the interest was there. I mean, if I were a competing team, I’d want the reigning Evan Masorka winner and former WBC champ, but maybe that’s just me.
It just doesn’t make sense to me. Clearly, United saw their situation for what it was, with Jang heading to Apple Valley. And they still have a capable starting pitcher in Conroy to teach any eventually incoming youngesters. Truthfully, I don’t get it. I think something smells fishy here; there has to be some underlying weird reason we don’t know yet. What do you guys think?

by **South Newlandia** » Tue Apr 12, 2022 5:01 pm

In unprecedented move, the South Newlandian government has announced that for the first time in the history of the country, the police will gain a semi-militaristic branch

Nia Freeman (president), Karin Guerra (minister of the exterior) and Alexander Wu (minister of opposing the Tumbran annexation of the United Clans; all Centrist Union) made a joint statement tonight announcing that South Newlandia will move on from their long-standing policy of having no military to speak of.
Freeman: “Recent developments across the Strele Channel have us worried. Tumbra has proven to be a nation that isn’t concerned with human rights or international law; and the wider multiverse has proven to be unconcerned about the blatant Tumbran violations. We have to face the reality that we can not rely on the common sense of foreign nations, especially in the case of Tumbra, to not simply attack and invade us, and we have to accept that the wider multiverse would not call out these blatant injustices on our behalf or come to our aid. As such, we have been forced into a decision we very much did not want to make. […]”.

The unlawful and brutal Tumbran invasion of the United Clans, formerly known as the Northlands, has been a grave concern for South Newlandians considering the close proximity of South Newlandia to Tumbra, and has quickly soured relations between the two countries. There is no guarantee that Tumbra will not widen their evil imperialist attacks to include South Newlandia, just across the Strele channel, largely undefended.

Guerra: “We are planning to equip the South Newlandian police force with equipment that could be described as militaristic. This includes planes, safety equipment such as helmets, patrol boats, but also, to a limited extend, warships and tanks. We have to be in a position where we can predict a Tumbran attack before it happens, and employ measures as needed.”

South Newlandian law has a provision that forbids the government from operating a military. Guerra: “We are not building a military. This is merely an addition to the South Newlandian police force, and will feature few weapons; and instead largely items for our protection, safety measures, and equipment for surveillance and spotting”

Wu: “In the current state of their government, Tumbra cannot be reasoned with. We are currently working on a militaristic pact with the reasonable nations in the Esportivan Union, trying our best to deter Tumbra from doing something stupid. Well, something even more stupid. We would like to note that this could not be further from any threat to Tumbra; South Newlandia is merely trying to defend itself here.”

The trio also announced that the police force would be gaining numbers; which is supposed to be incentivised by a raise in pay for police in South Newlandia.

Freeman: “We are trying our best to maintain relations with Tumbra, but we have to face the truth of the matter. The South Newlandian ambassador to Tumbra remains in Straton, but is ready to leave at a moments notice. Citizens of South Newlandia currently in Tumbra are advised to act with caution, and we currently recommend against vacationing in Tumbra.”

Details about the exact extend of the equipment South Newlandia will acquire are, at present, unknown, but costs for the entire program will likely go in the range of 9-digit Espos. At this time, it isn’t clear how South Newlandia expects to pay for these programs. Members of the Green Environmentalist Party, currently ruling in a coalition with the CU, describe the move as necessary: Bennet Wise: “We had no choice”, while members of the opposition call the move a “dangerous, but crucial step” (Paula Vogt, Conservative South Newlandia)

by **South Americanastan** » Tue Apr 12, 2022 5:49 pm

Post Game Press Conference
Bongo Johnson @ South Americanastan

Micheal Kelly bursted through the door of the press room, walking confidently to the table before sitting down. He had done this what seemed like a thousand times before, and with the heat turned up recently, he found it was best to act confident. Reporters were like predators - they pounced on any sign of weakness.

"Alright, I think it's a good day for all of us today. Any questions?"

Kelly took a sip from his thermos. He had tried to switch it up this time, and had filled his thermos with a Screwdriver instead of plain Vodka.

"You, in the back."

The reporter fired off a question before Kelly could even finish his sentence.

"With the recent defeat of Chromatika and now an easy win over Bongo Johnson, how do you feel about this team's playoff chances?"

Kelly responded just as quickly as the reporter had asked his question.

"I think we've got a good shot in the playoffs. We've got a great group of guys with a lot of fight in them. Say what you like about the roster, but they've never taken their foot off the gas at any point in this tournament. You, in the front."

Another reporter stood up, and slowly asked his question.

"Currently, South Americanastan is in a good position for a high seed in the tournament. Do you think the seeding will have a positive or negative effect on the team's shot at making a playoff run?"

"I think it helps us immensely. Higher seeds get relatively easier opponents - of course, there are no 'easy' opponents in this tournament, but some are less hard then others - and it helps a lot with confidence and morale."

Kelly began to choose a reporter for his next question, but a paper airplane soaring from inside the press area interrupted.

"Well... good job to whoever threw that getting it all the way over here. Looks like there's writing on the inside, so creative way to get me to answer a question, too."

Kelly opened the paper airplane, and read the chicken scratch handwriting on it.

RELE/\5E FRANK M0N7EFORTE N0\/\/ OR ELSE R0O/\/\ BL0W UP

"Okay then... this is a bomb threat. I'm not joking, some dickwad is saying they'll actually blow up the room. I'll be ending this early, please exit in an orderly fashion while security sweep the room."

by **Zwangzug** » Tue Apr 12, 2022 6:06 pm

This is the end of the group stage! For 22 teams, this is the end of their WBC hopes for the present, and for 32 others, the playoffs await!

RP cutoff. I will be going back and computing RD/9 for the cases where it matters, so scores and playoff seeding will be slightly delayed.

Group 1

South Newlandia              1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0  1
Liventia                     0 0 1 0 0 1 0 0 X  2

Ethane                       1 0 0 4 0 1 0 0 0  6
Araznan                      0 0 0 2 3 2 0 0 X  7

Sevendia                     0 0 0 0 2 0 1 0 0  3
StrayaRoos Barrier Islands   1 0 0 1 0 0 1 0 2  5

* Group 1                     Pld    W   L    RF   RA   RD   Pts 
1 South Newlandia              10    9   1    62   24  +38     9
2 Liventia                     10    8   2    51   38  +13     8
3 Ethane                       10    5   5    48   45   +3     5
4 Sevendia                     10    3   7    35   54  −19     3
5 Araznan                      10    3   7    42   66  −24     3
6 StrayaRoos Barrier Islands   10    2   8    29   40  −11     2

Group 2

Virginia Nova                0 3 0 1 0 1 0 0 0  5
Raspotochje                  0 0 0 0 1 1 0 0 0  2

Reorganized Portugal         0 0 0 0 1 3 0 4 0  8
Cassadaigua                  0 2 0 0 0 1 1 0 0  4

The Sherpa Empire            0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 4  5
Super-Llamaland              0 1 0 2 0 0 3 0 X  6

* Group 2                     Pld    W   L    RF   RA   RD   Pts 
1 Super-Llamaland              10    8   2    51   35  +16     8
2 The Sherpa Empire            10    7   3    49   36  +13     7
3 Reorganized Portugal         10    6   4    40   31   +9     6
4 Virginia Nova                10    4   6    25   34   −9     4
5 Cassadaigua                  10    3   7    31   48  −17     3
6 Raspotochje                  10    2   8    32   44  −12     2

Group 3

Unpleasant                   0 0 0 1 3 0 0 2 0 3  9
Odessa-Dneiper               0 2 3 0 1 0 0 0 0 0  6

Hapilopper                   2 0 0 0 3 3 1 0 1 10
Delaclava                    0 1 0 1 5 0 0 0 0  7

Quebec and Shingoryeo        1 0 0 0 0 2 0 2 0  5
Kohnhead                     0 0 0 0 0 0 0 2 0  2

* Group 3                     Pld    W   L    RF   RA   RD   Pts 
1 Quebec and Shingoryeo        10    7   3    64   40  +24     7
2 Kohnhead                     10    7   3    62   35  +27     7
3 Hapilopper                   10    6   4    48   48    0     6
4 Delaclava                    10    4   6    45   54   −9     4
5 Odessa-Dneiper               10    4   6    42   68  −26     4
6 Unpleasant                   10    2   8    38   54  −16     2

Group 4

Mylderm                      0 2 1 0 0 0 0 0 0  3
Tikariot                     0 1 0 0 0 2 1 0 X  4

St Saratoga                  3 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 3  6
Drawkland                    0 0 0 1 0 1 0 3 0  5

Big D Nation                 0 0 1 0 1 0 1 0 0  3
TJUN-ia                      2 7 0 1 1 0 0 2 X 13

* Group 4                     Pld    W   L    RF   RA   RD   Pts 
1 Mylderm                      10    8   2    51   31  +20     8
2 TJUN-ia                      10    6   4    61   38  +23     6
3 Drawkland                    10    6   4    65   50  +15     6
4 Tikariot                     10    5   5    50   42   +8     5
5 St Saratoga                  10    4   6    34   56  −22     4
6 Big D Nation                 10    1   9    29   73  −44     1

Group 5

Nova Anglicana               3 0 0 6 1 0 0 0 0 10
United Adaikes               1 1 2 0 2 0 1 0 0  7

Milchama                     0 0 2 0 1 1 0 0 0  4
Gortolekua                   0 2 0 0 3 0 0 0 X  5

Second Peenadian             4 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0  5
Bardney                      3 0 0 0 1 0 1 0 1  6

* Group 5                     Pld    W   L    RF   RA   RD   Pts 
1 Nova Anglicana               10    7   3    51   36  +15     7
2 Milchama                     10    6   4    45   36   +9     6
3 Bardney                      10    5   5    44   51   −7     5
4 United Adaikes               10    4   6    43   49   −6     4
5 Gortolekua                   10    4   6    42   42    0     4
6 Second Peenadian             10    4   6    37   48  −11     4

Group 6

Quintessence of Dust         2 5 0 0 0 0 0 1 0  8
The Greater Nordics          0 1 0 0 1 3 0 0 0  5

Barnettsville                3 0 0 1 3 0 0 0 1  8
Abanhfleft                   0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0  0

Concordians                  1 0 1 3 0 0 0 0 0 0  5
Murderbum                    0 0 1 3 1 0 0 0 0 1  6

* Group 6                     Pld    W   L    RF   RA   RD   Pts 
1 Quintessence of Dust         10    8   2    67   35  +32     8
2 Barnettsville                10    6   4    55   53   +2     6
3 Abanhfleft                   10    6   4    34   40   −6     6
4 Murderbum                    10    5   5    47   36  +11     5
5 The Greater Nordics          10    4   6    48   49   −1     4
6 Concordians                  10    1   9    24   62  −38     1

Group 7

The 189                      0 0 5 0 0 0 0 2 1  8
Eshialand                    0 0 0 0 0 2 1 1 1  5

Norrhem                      1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0  1
Banija                       0 0 0 1 0 1 0 1 X  3

Huron League                 1 1 1 0 0 0 2 0 1  6
Nueva Orinoquia              0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0  1

* Group 7                     Pld    W   L    RF   RA   RD   Pts 
1 Banija                       10    8   2    68   25  +43     8
2 Eshialand                    10    5   5    39   42   −3     5
3 Norrhem                      10    5   5    44   44    0     5
4 Huron League                 10    4   6    37   57  −20     4
5 The 189                      10    4   6    40   50  −10     4
6 Nueva Orinoquia              10    4   6    33   43  −10     4

Group 8

Camcity                      0 0 0 1 0 0 0 1 0  2
Ranoria                      0 0 2 0 2 1 0 4 X  9

HUElavia                     0 0 0 0 0 0 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0  3
Zwangzug                     0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 1 3  6

Brookstation                 3 0 2 1 0 0 0 0 1  7
Krytenia                     1 3 0 0 0 0 0 0 0  4

* Group 8                     Pld    W   L    RF   RA   RD   Pts 
1 Ranoria                      10    9   1    62   28  +34     9
2 Zwangzug                     10    8   2    63   26  +37     8
3 Brookstation                 10    6   4    33   40   −7     6
4 Krytenia                     10    3   7    22   39  −17     3
5 Camcity                      10    2   8    28   57  −29     2
6 HUElavia                     10    2   8    28   46  −18     2

Group 9

Dotivija                     5 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0  6
Chromatika                   1 2 0 3 0 0 0 1 X  7

StrayaRoos                   2 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0  3
Bongo Johnson                0 1 2 1 0 0 0 1 X  5

South Americanastan          0 3 0 0 0 8 1 0 5 17
Kriegiersien                 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0  1

* Group 9                     Pld    W   L    RF   RA   RD   Pts 
1 South Americanastan          10    9   1    68   26  +42     9
2 Chromatika                   10    8   2    61   40  +21     8
3 Kriegiersien                 10    4   6    38   54  −16     4
4 Bongo Johnson                10    4   6    44   59  −15     4
5 StrayaRoos                   10    3   7    37   55  −18     3
6 Dotivija                     10    2   8    44   58  −14     2

Group 3: Quebec and Shingoryeo beat Kohnhead in both games.
Group 4: TJUN-ia and Drawkland split their series but TJUN-ia had a greater margin of victory in the two games.
Group 6: Barnettsville and Abanhfleft split their series but Barnettsville had a greater margin of victory in the two games.
Group 7: Eshialand and Norrhem split their series but Eshialand has a greater margin of victory in the two games.
Group 9: Kriegiersien and Bongo Johnson split their series but Kriegiersien has a greater margin of victory in the two games.

Seedings/tiebreakers (see this spreadsheet for RD/9 stuff, and please do check my work if you are so inclined):

Group winners:

1. South Americanastan
2. South Newlandia
3. Ranoria
4. Banija
5. Quintessence of Dust
6. Mylderm
7. Super-Llamaland
8. Quebec and Shingoryeo
9. Nova Anglicana

Second-place teams:
10. Zwangzug
11. Chromatika
12. Liventia
13. Kohnhead
14. The Sherpa Empire
15. TJUN-ia
16. Milchama
17. Barnettsville
18. Eshialand

Third-place teams:
19. Drawkland
20. Reorganized Portugal
21. Hapilopper
22. Abanhfleft
23. Brookstation
24. Ethane
25. Norrhem
26. Bardney
27. Kriegiersien

Remaining 5-5 teams:
28. Murderbum
29. Tikariot

Three best 4-6 teams:
30. Gortolekua
31. The Greater Nordics
32. United Adaikes

Round of 32:

With 16 series and 16 major league teams in Zwangzug, the bracket will be split into quadrants corresponding to the four divisions of the professional league, giving every team's fans an opportunity to see the WBC at home! See here for more information about these cities and stadiums.

Central Division

South Americanistan vs. United Adaikes: X Park, 102d
Milchama vs. Barnettsville: Chet Barzun Stadium, FTC
Nova Anglicana vs. Ethane: East Side Park, FTC
Quebec and Shingoryeo vs. Norrhem: Rise Stadium, Frischberg

Northeast Division

Banija vs. Murderbum*: Paddock Park, Arlington
Kohnhead vs. Reorganized Portugal: Wee Field, Noh Weir
Liventia vs. Hapilopper: Glieb Park, Weegham
Quintessence of Dust vs. Tikariot*: Swainyo Stadium, Zwischen

West Division

South Newlandia vs. The Greater Nordics: Aganath Stadium, Belpub
TJUN-ia vs. Eshialand: Salick Stadium, Inver
Zwangzug vs. Abanhfleft*: Worm Hole, Spenson
Super-Llamaland vs. Bardney: Mepo Stadium, Hadiln

Southeast Division

Ranoria vs. Gortolekua: Eastridge Park, Nuel
The Sherpa Empire versus Drawkland: Moore Field, Kerlagrad
Chromatika vs. Brookstation*: Delacruz Field, Bassabook
Mylderm vs. Kriegiersien: Cormau Park, Logrove

*Teams swapped to avoid group stage rematches: Murderbum and Tikariot, Brookstation and Abanhfleft

The next two days will be off days, so you all can check my math and I can try to do some stadium writeups. The playoff schedule will be edited into the OP soon.

by **Barnettsville** » Wed Apr 13, 2022 5:30 am

Do you believe in miracles? YES!!

ABAHNFLEFT - With a "staff-wide" two-hitter, the Blue Jays not only qualified for the knockouts, but finished as runner-up! Following the 8-0 victory, the team watched the other games of significance. The statistician determined through games played that Barnettsville finished in the 17th position, and will face a familiar foe in the first round: Milchama. From the manager:

"We've seen them before, we have great respect for them. But we are not scared, will not live in our fears, and are playing to win."

by **Kriegiersien** » Wed Apr 13, 2022 7:24 am

The meat lover
Your magazine for good cuisine

South Americanastan          0 3 0 0 0 8 1 0 5 17
Kriegiersien                 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0  1

That was close. After being totally destroyed from South Americanastan in the last group match of the WBC, the Kriegiersien team had a final meal. While eating a big Bearinhoneysandwich, Sarah Strongarm drinking frustrated some more Mead after having a really bad day as pitcher, the news that Bongo Johnson had won 5-3 against StrayaRoos and by that Kriegirsien made it into the round of 32, reached the table. The whole team now began to celebrate with some more beverage.

The culinary travel goes on to Mylderm.

by **The Greater Nordics** » Wed Apr 13, 2022 7:34 pm

filip Novikov sits in his office at King Lauritz I stadium. He is halfway through a bottle of vodka and he is thinking that he is about to be fired as Nordic manager after an epic collapse in the WBC. He is not even looking at the playoff standings as he knows that the Nordics didnt make the playoffs after the way he has led this team. He has already sent the team home to their pro clubs and they were not in a great mood either. Suddenly, the door opens and he looks up, expecting it to be the head of the federation. To his surprise, it is bench coach Ralph Maessen and he is all excited. "What is it Maessen? Maessen sits down and pours himself some vodka. He takes a sip and then smiles at Filip. "You will not believe this but we have made the knockout rounds!" Novikov is speechless and floored by this news. "We made the knockouts?! How in the hell is that possible, we finished 5 in the group?" Ralph grins. "It turns out that we were one of the 'best' teams after the top three in each group. So you better call the team back and get them ready to head to Zwangzug! Anything can happen now, it is 5 game series from now on!" Novikov finishes his glass and calls the team back. Most are surprised that they are not done yet but they are newly motivated to show that they are better than their group stage record.

by **Ranoria** » Wed Apr 13, 2022 9:03 pm

@KrautsBaseball That'll do it! The boys get the job done and beat Camcity 9-2 to secure the top slot in Group 8! #GoKrauts

@VickHamiltonReporter What a game at Constance! Good time for dollar dog night, I had to leave the press booth to capitalize on that! #GoKrauts #Playoffs #DollarDogNight

@Nicholas_Lux Not done yet! Tune in, because we're gonna put on a show now! #GoTime #Dingers

Blast Off For Krauts, Who Finish Group Stage In Style To Secure 3^rd Seed In Playoffs

Ranoria's just finished their best group stage ever by several factors - can they follow it up with a deep playoff run?

What a rush it's been for this team, a crew that wasn't expected to do much. Their best showing in the last three Classics has been an 18-12 mark that still wasn't good enough for a postseason berth. This go-round, they broke all kinds of barriers. It was their best start ever - with 5 straight wins to open things up when their previous mark had been 2. It was their best winning percentage in a group stage ever, at 90%, up from their 19-11 WBC 50 run's 63.3%. And finally, it's the first time we've won our group in WBC. The Krauts really look like they've taken the next step as a franchise...but the knockout stages are where they'll get a chance to prove their mettle.

First up, Ranoria's got a 4-6 Gortolekua squad. They finished their season with a 5-4 win over Milchama, a fellow playoff team, but their record is a strong indicator of who's the favorite here. This is their debut Classic, and making the playoffs is one hell of an accomplishment with that in mind. But the Krauts will be looking to stomp down on what could be a potential Cinderella run early. That 3^rd seed for Ranoria paid off in a softer draw for the round of 32, and Tommy Verona will be opening up the series on the mound.

The first time Ranoria broke through and made the playoffs, we survived a grueling 3-2 series against The Sherpa Empire. That was one of the most iconic wins in Ranorian international sporting history this side of gridiron. Part of that was due to our barely skirting into the playoffs on a 10-1 run to end the group stage and getting the 16th seed as a result. We were punching above our weight, and it showed when we were swept by Newmanistan. This, while just as big a matchup technically, isn't going to have the same kind of stakes behind it.

For once, we're not the underdogs, and with this lineup, we shouldn't be. While it's dangerous for any team to look ahead, well, we here at RSSN aren't affiliated with them! So we are going to be doing just that! With the third seed in the tournament, Ranoria has legitimately gained the status of a potential dark-horse team that has the capacity to be a real threat in this postseason. We're tied for the best record in the multiverse this season, trust us - nobody is licking their chops at that matchup outside of Banija. (and that's just because they like getting cracks at us to avenge their flagship college gridiron program, Loyola-Istria, which has lost four straight games to our own Richardson University Governors).

So following our presumed Round of 32 victory, we've got either Drawkland or a familiar foe in that same Sherpa Empire.

The Base Corps, at 6-4 this season, has never won a round of 16 game. You can look at that haunting statistic in one of two ways, each equally damning to one side. First and more optimistically, they're physically incapable of beating anyone in a round of 16 matchup, as they've shown time and time again. Second, well, would be regression towards the mean.

i.e, they're a good team and karma will swing back their way soon, and it will not be a pretty swing for our boys in red.

Meanwhile, the Sherpa Empire is one of the most historically strong teams in the sport, and they were ranked 7^th in the world coming into this Classic, delivering on that ranking with a 7-3 campaign. Just like with Drawkland, Ranoria will be hard-pressed despite our impressive results to escape with a win.

In either matchup, Ranoria will have advanced to the second round of the playoffs, a successful season by any metric as a team that didn't enter as a heavy favorite to win the whole thing. Even one victory in the ensuing Round of 16 series - regardless of the foe - would again be an accomplishment in and of itself, especially for fans who remember the thrashing Newmanistan laid on us when we had the audacity to step on the diamond with them. But if we could make it all the way to the quarterfinal?

Well, maybe we'll have finally cashed in on the "up-and-comer" status we got in that by-now legendary WBC 50 run.

by **Milchama** » Thu Apr 14, 2022 8:54 am

"How come Barnettsville has a red flag but are called the Blue Jays?"

"Why does a flag have to be the same color as a team nickname?"

"It just feels like it should be"

"That's not a good argument"

"I'll concede that one"

"So then do you have a good argument?"

"Not really, I just really feel that way"

"Ok then, why did you ask the question?"

"Because it's been bugging me for years. Like so many teams clearly have nicknames that are based on flags/uniforms whatever. Sarzonia's Stars with the large star in their flag, Krytenia being Cyan and calling themselves the Cyans, Zwangzug are the Zebras, Banija are the Lions mostly. This very clearly seems to be that flags determine the nicknames"

"I guess but like would you guess Warriors from our flag?"

"1. There are swords on our flag and 2. our name is Milchama. Like come on now, what the hell else are we supposed to be?"

"Ok fair point well Barnettsville does have alliteration going for them"

"Yes but there are many other words that start with B and would work with their flag"

"Why does this bother you so much?"

"Because I hate that Vlad Guerrero Jr, Cavan Biggio, and Bo Bichette make me feel old"

"What?"

"I mean, seriously, what is with the Blue Jays having so many players who were the sons of other famous players"

"I still have no idea what this has to do with Barnettsville"

"Oh they just throw too many perfect games"

"Huh?"

"Nothing"

"Cool"

"I still don't see why you're angry about the flag though"

"Oh I'm mostly angry that we missed out on first place through two incredible bullpen meltdowns and now have to play slightly tougher team in doubles."

"How do you feel about the lack of 3 game series in this WBC?"

"I like it, I don't think series are necessary. Yeah it's a small sample but in a small sample we should prevail more often than not. These larger samples make it harder for us to play our style"

"Even though we did better, considering rank and all that, in the longer format?"

"I think that was a just luck and we had some bad luck this time but good luck last time. 30 games is still not that much"

"It's longer than anything else we play including cricket"

"Sure but that's baseball"

"So then you want longer classics?"

"I don't think it matters that much. I think Milchama will do well in both formats. The question for us is whether we can repeat our performance from the last WBC"

"So basically we need to beat Barnettsville"

"Yep"

"And then we need to beat the 1 seed South Americanastan"

"We can be UMBC"

"What?"

"Don't worry about it but remember that Virginia is from the south"

"Ok then"

"It was even in the South Bracket"

"I'm still confused by what you are talking about"

"I'm talking about upsets"

"Like the horse?"

"Like the basketball tournament"

"What's basketball?"

"Don't worry about it"

"Ok"

"But we need to do better"

"Basically"

"Well then we know what to do"

"What"

"We need to help out the Warriors"

"Exactly"

"Let's do it!"

"Ok say as I say and do as I do"

''Ringa pakia!''
''Uma tiraha!''
''Turi whatia!''
''Hope whai ake!''
''Waewae takahia kia kino!''
''Ka mate, ka mate''
''Ka ora, ka ora''
''Ka mate, ka mate''
''Ka ora, ka ora''
''Tēnei te tangata pūhuruhuru''
''Nāna nei i tiki mai whakawhiti te rā''
''Ā upane, ka upane''
''Whiti te rā, hī!''

"Now repeat after me!"

"Forini! Forini!"
"Finidi! Finidi!"
"George! George!"
"Oh Brother! Oh brother!"

*They strip and run around for 6 minutes*

"We pray the Margaret of SnubNose 38 and Random Number God that you may deliver us victory over all our group members and any other infidels that we face in international play"

"Sacrifice the Rubber Chicken!"

*Swoosh of an axe and the chicken is dead*

"Margaret we pray that you take this sacrifice of a rubber chicken in good faith and that by your deliverance Milchama does well in all international competitions"

"Come on You Warriors!"

"Let's Go Milchama!"

by **Barnettsville** » Thu Apr 14, 2022 1:28 pm

Playoff Magic??

ST. CATHERINE - As the Blue Jays travel to Zwangzug to face the Michama Warriors in the first round of the postseason, it was announced who the "starters" for the series would be.

"The interns screwed up and didn't tell us whether it was three or five games if they go the distance. So we are posting a five man rotation just in case," said the head of the NBL Player Relations Office.

Game 1: Scott Luna
Game 2: Wade Rees
Game 3: Nick Wheeler
Game 4: Connor Eastwood
Game 5: Brenden Meyer

The league has also been experimenting with a radical idea in the NBL minor leagues to possibly translate into a future WBC host bid: four game series instead of three. They would be grouped into a pair of double headers. As an example:

A-Mets (St. Catherine NBL)
B-Pirates (Lakeview NBL)
C-Mariners (Lakeview NBL)
D-Blue Jays (St. Catherine NBL)

Day 1 of series
Mets-Pirates (DH)
Mariners-Blue Jays (DH)

Day 2 of series
Mets-Pirates (DH)
Mariners-Blue Jays (DH)

Said the same Player Relations representative, "We are testing it in our Rookie League in Tidewater Province, to see if it would be feasible for not only our league, but to use it for a future bid. We will see how it works out before we choose to use it for a bid."

by **Nova Anglicana** » Thu Apr 14, 2022 2:07 pm

Ty Oliver took a long drink from the glass on the desk in his office. The water, cold and clear, flowed down his throat, refreshing him after a long day of thinking about his team's second-half performance and their playoff picture. He'd also found that the more water he drank, the less time the boos filled his head. It really had been a jarring experience, that first half of WBC 54. To be turned on by the fans, to see calls for his head in the papers, it had all shaken him. But that was life when you were the face of the most popular national team in the country.

He'd tried to shake things up after an uneven 3-2 start by starting Tommy Logan against Second Peenadian in the first game of the second half. He'd thought that Logan's cutter and slurve could give the unranked team a different look, knock them off their game a bit. Logan had pitched four innings, three of them scoreless, but he'd given up four runs in the only non-scoreless inning. Three hits and two walks, with a key failure to turn a double play, had staked the home team to a 4-0 lead after one inning. Jonathan Drake, the typical #3 starter being skipped this time around, had pitched three innings in relief and only given up one run, which was an encouraging sign after giving six runs in his first start, against Milchama. The problem was, there was no support for either of those guys. Four opposing pitchers had combined to scatter five hits and one walk, for just one run. Gary McKinney had batted three-for-four on the day with the one RBI, but he was the lone guy doing much of anything on offense. Two losses to this nobody team and 3-3 overall. About the only bright spot was that it wasn't a home loss. Didn't prevent the papers from clamoring he had to go. To make it worse, he had basically nothing to say to the guys once again. What do you say when you go 0-2 against a team you should wipe the floor with, getting doubled up (12-6 overall) and losing in what amounted to a high school field in front of a high school-sized crowd?

Thankfully, Christian Hammond saved his and the team's bacon at home. After giving up an RBI double to Adrian Bautista in the first, Hammond pitched five consecutive scoreless innings, including retiring eleven consecutive batters at one point. Going into the seventh, Hammond carried a 2-1 lead after a two-run shot by Sam Erickson and a line of 6 IP, 3 H, 1 R/ER, 1 BB, 6 K. Unfortunately, young Gunvor Ready lined a ball into the gap, scoring the even younger Kjell Ríos from second and making it 2-2. Roger Bizet came on to get the final two outs, striking out Veronika Santiago and getting Gil Menéndez to swing over a 1-2 slider down and in, preserving the tie. Davis Shipley led off the bottom of the seventh with a line-drive single, followed by stealing second base while Victor Charpentier struck out. Luca Favreau, spelling Hank Oliver in center, chopped a ball to the right side that might have sneaked through the infield were it not for an excellent play by Sylvester Svensson. As it was, Shipley moved to third with two outs, where he scored after Barrett Satterfield smoked a ball over a leaping Santiago to give the Lions a 3-2 lead. Justin Chandler and Ricky Hart closed things out, much closer than needed, but a big home win.

The next game wasn't close, but it didn't look that way until the ninth. Rocky Gantt, who had hurled eight-plus shutout innings against Gortolekua, looked shaky in the first inning, giving up three hits and a walk to put the Lions down 2-1, recovered nicely. Over the next six innings, he whiffed seven batters, walked none, and surrendered only a further three hits, giving him a more than respectable line for the game. Meanwhile, McKinney, David Conner, and Oliver had come up with RBI hits, giving the Lions a 3-2 going into the ninth (Simon Steele had pitched a scoreless eighth). Hart was again warming up to come in for the save in the bottom of the ninth when events rendered him completely unnecessary. Gal Tover had pitched a perfectly fine six innings of three-run ball, while Edwin Filip and Hamish Rosenberg had kept the game close in the seventh and eighth, but all hell broke loose in the ninth.

Boom Tekblam hoped to give the Warriors a fighting chance by setting down the bottom of the order, but it was not to be. Nolan Dunning, Davis Shipley, Victor Charpentier, Hank Oliver, and Barrett Satterfield all hit singles off of Tekblam, scoring two runs and forcing him to be pulled. Nemo Haiyono was summoned next, but without the time to properly warm up, two more runs were across the plate with nine pitches resulting in two bases-loaded walks. David Conner struck out, but Gary McKinney smashed another hit, scoring Satterfield, but Sam Erickson was tagged out at the plate on a good throw by Martin Jondon, resulting in two outs, an 8-2 scoreline, and runners on first and second. Haiyono walked Dunning to load the bases and surrendered an RBI single to Shipley, making it 9-2. James Marionovich was then called upon next to face the lefty Charpentier, but the young left fielder crushed a ball to straightaway center for a grand slam and a 13-2 Lions lead. Hank Oliver doubled, then scored on a Barrett Satterfield double, making it 14-2. Sam Erickson then smacked a ball to right-center, which should have easily scored Satterfield, but he fell down rounding third, attempted to get back up and head for home, stumbled again, and was then caught in a rundown to end the inning. This made Marionovich perhaps the first pitcher to record at least one out when all of his batted balls in the inning exceeded 100 MPH exit velocity. Needless to say, Darren Sharp came on instead of Hart and recorded a clean ninth inning for the win. This game had resulted in the first real excellent offensive game for the Lions, who had been averaging 3.1 runs/game up to this point and were actually underwater in run differential. It wasn't a champagne celebration in the clubhouse, but it was raucous. The team felt loose again.

And then they returned home. Ty Oliver was hoping the good vibes from Milchama would carry over, but he wasn't counting on anything and he could already hear the boos in his head. Bardney was a weird club for sure, what with their old style of play. Thaddeus "Too-Tall Tad" O'Neill would be the opposing hurler; hopefully they could have more success against him than they'd had in the first five innings against Kermit "The Dartford Flash" Connelly, which was zip. They'd come up with four runs in the final four innings to get the win, but it had been way too close. O'Neill struck out only two batters on the day, but it took the Lions seven and two-thirds innings to scrape across two runs against him. A two-run double from the man they called "Big Six" earlier in the game meant that the two runs only sufficed to tie the score. Joshua Rouillard mixed his seven pitches effectively, allowing seven baserunners and just the two runs in seven innings, but they couldn't give him enough support to win. Steele, Chandler, Bizet, and Hart tossed scoreless innings, keeping the Lions in it, while "Too-Tall Tad" just kept on chucking. Finally, with one out and two on, Vincent Saint-Denis put his prodigious power to good use, swatting a ball deep into the night, landing well into the bleachers in left, sending everyone home happy and cheers resounding across the bay. Milchama kept pace, so the Lions still needed a win against United Adaikes to keep them in first place.

For this, they turned to Caleb Sherman, who had baffled United Adaikes to the tune of one run in eight innings his first time around. Unfortunately, this time, they had his number. Sherman limped through five innings, giving up eight hits and two walks, resulting in six runs allowed against only four strikeouts. Fortunately for him, the Lions had his opposite number's pitches down pat. Apparently, the UA hurler was tipping when he threw off-speed, and the Lions scored three in the first and knocked him from the box in the fourth, charging him with seven runs and leading 9-4 by the end of three and a half. They'd tack on another in the fifth, enough to survive. Sharp, Gray, Lefebvre, and Logan combined to give up just one run in four innings in relief of Sherman, earning a 10-7 win. It wasn't pretty, but it was a win. Saint-Denis knocked in three runs, while David Conner and Sam Erickson each had a pair of rib-eyes, pushing the team to a strong offensive performance.

Up next was an actual five-game series in the Round of 32 against Ethane. The Red Kites had muddled their way to a 5-5 record and were considered a middling squad nowadays, but Oliver knew not to underestimate them. They'd defeated the Lions in WBC 44 and could still be a dangerous club. Besides, the single-game format was messing with records. The Lions were 7-3, but could easily have been 9-1 or even 5-5, had they not made some late rallies. The biggest thing was to keep their heads and play consistently. They had to deal with the grind of a series format and not get too up or down if they won or lost, because it could all be reversed the next day. The Lions had avoided the ignominy of missing the playoffs for just the second time in team history, but their Round of 16 streak, which stretched all the way back to WBC 34, could be in jeopardy. To date, missing the playoffs in WBC 33 remained the only time the Lions had not reached at least the Round of 16, even when the playoffs began in the Round of 32, just like this one. A long streak was on the line; a tradition was on the line. Ty Oliver was not going to be the one to break that tradition.

OOC Note: Rotation will return to normal for the series against Ethane.

by **Chromatika** » Thu Apr 14, 2022 8:57 pm

Chromatika to Join Llamaphant Pro Baseball - Frenei to Remain Main Sponsor

Frenei Chromatik Baseball League spokesperson Justin Emerson stated from the League Offices in Chromia at the close of the regular season that starting the next season, twelve teams will be leaving the Chromatik Baseball League to join Llamaphant Pro Baseball as the LPB expands to four different leagues. Mr. Emerson would not state which nation would be joining the league with Chromatika, but did say that the twelve Chromatik teams entering will be the following in three divisions:

CMT Central
Alnio Redhawks (previously Reds)
Chromia Comets
Chromia Diamonds
Hanai Heroes

CMT North
Larhai Legends
Lanar Rangers
Rhoni Rhonin
Shantarr Scorpions

CMT South
Eyrods Pilots
Felswyr Fire
Knetyohai Destroyers (previously Dynamo)
Umbar Corsairs

At first glance, the CMT Central looks to be the most stacked with both Chromia clubs and Hanai, while Lahai being one of the teams to join the CMT North seems to be a bit of a stretch. The CMT South will be a fun watch, as the teams in it are all perennial playoff contenders.

"There will be an expansion draft to help the teams even out in terms of parity," stated Emerson, "This will be an exciting time for Chromatik baseball."

The four teams left will do something - but nobody knows what yet.

(O.O) · by **TJUN-ia** » Fri Apr 15, 2022 8:04 am

After a 3-game losing run stunted our WBC54 Group Stage, the Battin' Jags of TJUN-ia were in crisis mode...and that is certainly a rare thing to say around these parts. One by one, the blows have come in the 2nd half of this season to point that entering the regular-season finale, Mylderm were already group winners and TJUN-ia were simply battling Drawkland for 2nd place. Phillip Hellas-Verona was certainly trying to improve things so that his side can get as high of seeding as possible...because he knew these players deserved the best send-off possible. #OneFinalRun can't end with the worst possible run and as such, Rounders Field was ready for a Final Farewell that many hoped would end things on a high against the Big D Nation.

In the end, this was the game we all needed and the game this team deserved- a game where we could remember how good TJUN-ian Baseball and this team can be on their day. Kyle McNash would start on this momentous occasion and while he would concede 3 runs, that was certainly not going to affect the way this contest was going to go. TJUN-ia managed 13 runs today, 7 of them in the 2nd inning and to say things were one-sided was certainly an understatement. Because of how many runs I have to tabulate and everything, the runs we scored will now be presented in table formats the Battin' Jags said goodbye in style!

1st: Ki Yung-son 2-run HR - 2-0
2nd: Kyle McNash Grand Slam - 6-0, Steven Fulmer 3-run HR - 9-0
4th: Joe Gregory RBI (via Matoko Kagawa) - 10-1
5th: Bryce Calhoun Solo HR - 11-2
8th: Angel Enrique 2-ryn HR - 13-3

We end the group in 2nd on head-to-head run differential, with a record of 6-4. Considering we were 4-1 after the first half, our fall is significant...but we've still made it to the Playoffs and will fly to Zwangzug as the 15th seed with nothing to lose. The main aim will be to go as far as these players can handle and up first is #18 Eshialand at Salick Stadium in Inver. The Owls may be the worst=ranked 2nd-placed team, but they were in a group with Banija so that is actually understandable. This series will alternate between using and not using the DH, so that could be important in deciding proceedings. Just go as long as you can, boys! No pressure on your last run...GO JAGS!

SCHEDULE (Group G)
G1: vs St Saratoga (84) - Rounders Field, Portside W 11-1 (1st)
G2: @Tikariot (13) - Oceanview Park, Sports City, Port Rhovanyon W 6-1 (1st)
G3: vs Drawkland (35) - The Diamond in The Gardens, New Washington W 10-5 (1st)
G4: vs Mylderm (48) - The Diamond in The Gardens, New Washington L 5-6 (2nd)
G5: @Big D Nation (UR) W 4-3 (2nd/4-1/+20RD)
----------------BREAK TIME----------------
G6: @St Saratoga (84) W 4-1 (2nd)
G7: vs Tikariot (13) - Rounders Field, Portside L 2-8 (2nd)
G8: @Drawkland (35) - Hydrogen Cyanide Field, Drawk City L 4-7 (2nd)
G9: @Mylderm (28) L 2-3 (3rd)
G10: vs Big D Nation (UR) - Rounders Field, Portside W 13-3 (2nd [H2HRD]/6-4/+23PD/15th Seed)

Round of 32 vs Eshialand (16/#18/5-5/2nd in G7) @Salick Stadium, Inver, Zwangzug
G1:
G2:
G3:
G4:
G5:

by **Ko-oren** » Fri Apr 15, 2022 1:10 pm

Another season, another crisis: our professional baseball league has just 12 clubs and none of them can see eye to eye. In the 10 seasons of the current format - twelve teams, 132 games - we've rarely seen all twelve clubs report back after winter in the exact same configuration. Aviansola became Intermare, Aonishi became Amandine - teams fled Yoshima and poured into the mainland, where they expected to make some money. Whether to expand the league's finances or to focus on the core market (Yoshima and Finisterre) has torn the Owners apart. And not just that: the Finisterran teams (owners and fans) have always felt a little antagonised by the Yoshimans: they feel that the latter are trying to make this league all about them. On top of that, Yoshima's regional government threatened to take their autonomy (or even independence!) which pairs well with an independent league of just Yoshiman teams.

Every single allegation was deemed unfounded by the Yoshiman owners, of course. Nothing could be proven, and to be fair, one group of clubs can't survive without the other.

That is, a handful of clubs are stable and should never move. Santa Teresa and Ferrovente, for instance. Both Katashi clubs. Echizen, Teragaseki, and Arakura are the sole representatives of their islands and also have no business finding a home elsewhere. That leaves us with the Silvers, Admirals, Challengers, Quarry, and Wanderers, who play in smaller cities and are one disgruntled and greedy owner away from relocation to a city that doesn't care about the team or the sport in general. Case in point: the Aminey Wanderers, Intermare Admirals, and Amandine Challengers. It makes the league money, it makes the owners money, but those three home stadiums are empty and barren no matter how good the product on the field is.

Trying to deal with this for once and for all, the owners tried to coax each other in signing a document locking down their teams for five years, while trying to figure out the long term strategy. This document was signed last season, and nearly every owner wants out of the deal already. Between cities and regional governments, team owners, baseball fans, and the like, we have a few different camps:

The Expansionists believe that baseball should be Ko-oren's national summer pastime - cricket (which is basically southwestern baseball) be damned. The north is too cold for autumn play, but that still leaves the capitals and most of Cote Austral to be conquered - and the Aminey Wanderers and Amandine Challengers were a brilliant move in securing Cote Austral's large population and good year-round weather.
Members: baseball fans in 'the rest' of Ko-oren, greedy owners

The Traditionalists believe that baseball should remain in the towns and cities that have played the sport for nearly a century, hoping that the league focuses on the regions of Yoshima and Finisterre that value the teams, with a strong minor league system for the towns that miss out on major league representation.
Members: baseball fans in small towns, traditional owners, and municipal governments of Yoshima

The Yoshiman Independence Movement believe that the league should be split into a Yoshiman conference and a non-Yoshiman conference at least, and a split into two different leagues if possible. Whatever the two remaining mainland teams (Ferrovente and Santa Teresa) end up going into, they don't care. Bring teams back to Aviansola, Aonishi, Alara, and the towns lining Leleia's coast that aren't Katashi.
Members: conservative Yoshimans, particularly on Selesi and Leleia

The Idealists believe that the Ko-orenite league should try to join the LPB to unify all factions in the face of a greater danger - that being the Super-Llamalandian and South Newlandian teams. Even if just a few teams join it and the Yoshiman teams create a new league for just their own, at least the established clubs left out by the eastern bullies would have a place.
Members: good question

The debate is dominated by the first two groups, but after rumours of the Chromatik clubs joining the LPB, the fourth group has gotten significant (and surprising) support from various Ko-orenite message boards. The posters aren't necessarily baseball fans - in fact, usually they're not. At least, that's what we assume given the policies surrounding anonymity on said website.

On top of all that, the national team decided not to participate in the World Baseball Classic. In previous editions, there was a distinct red/orange/yellow jersey to make the Yoshimans feel part of the nation - they don't rally around the green and blue - and the nickname 'Dragonflies' was briefly, officially, changed, but nobody really cared for that and continued the old nickname. The national baseball team always was a unifying factor, but we've even lost that.

by **Drawkland** » Fri Apr 15, 2022 3:10 pm

Hydrogen Cyanide Field, Drawkland
MD 10 against St Saratoga

Franklin Bell had just walked off the mound. A St Saratoga player grounded to second place for the easy 4-3 to end the inning, but the damage had been done. Two batters earlier, Bell had surrendered a three-run home run to give up the lead to St Saratoga. The score was now 6-5 going into the bottom of the ninth, and Drawkland had the bottom of the order to go.

The mood in Hydrogen Cyanide Field had shifted dramatically. The Base Corps took a two-run lead in the bottom of the eighth, a sizeable advantage with just three outs remaining to close out the group stage. Lorraine Lockwood had held the deficit in check the previous inning, and would now be awarded the win provided Franklin Bell could come out and deliver three simple outs to bring Drawkland to the playoffs.

All he needed was three outs. The inning got off spectacularly, with Bell dissecting the first batter in a three-pitch strikeout. The next batter, however, pounced on the first pitch and sent it to the gap. He had a standing double, and now a runner was in scoring position with only one out. Bell would then get in a seven-pitch battle with the next batter, only to walk him on a borderline backdoor slider. Two runners on, one out. At least there was a man on first now to activate the chance for a double play. Bell attempted to pitch to contact, but missed his first two spots low. His next pitch was a forkball that came out a little too flat, and that was all the batter needed to send the ball over the fence and take the lead.

Now Bell strode sullenly back to the Drawkian dugout. His head was down and avoiding eye contact with everyone, especially some of the nastier fans heckling him. The rest of the dugout just refused to acknowledge him as he came down the steps to the bench. Everybody just wanted to wish that he wasn't there. Everybody, that is, except one person.

Lorraine Lockwood, once she saw Bell sit down, stood up from her spot at the end of the dugout. Her face was twisted into a scowl, and she marched across the dugout to confront Franklin Bell.

"What the hell was that?!" Lorraine exclaimed, bending down a bit to be at Bell's level. Bell just sat silently, etching a thousand-yard stare into the concrete steps of the dugout.

"I'm talking to you, Frank!" She repeated, crouching down to try and meet his gaze. "You said you had this in hand. You made Blanton take me off the mound. Why? Why would you tell him you could finish this game if you clearly couldn't?"

"Hey, Lockwood, calm down." Lane Kavana heard the commotion and came over to investigate. "I know you're new, but you have to remember the unwritten rules. You don't talk down Frank Bell."

"Why though? Why is that the case?" Lorraine whipped her head around. "Why should he not be held accountable? Why do we all have to suffer when he's given free reign to cause it?"

"You're causing a scene." Lane inclined his head upwards, gesturing at the field-level fans who were scrambling to take out their phones and record the scuffle. "If you really want to pick on him, do it in the clubhouse later."

As he said that, the crowd went into an uproar. Dan Peters had just struck out on a borderline pitch to make the second out in the inning. Only one out now stood between Drawkland and tanking in the playoff race.

"Fine." Lorraine wanted to rip into her teammate so badly but she knew she couldn't risk making fights where everybody could see.

One groundout later, the game was over and Drawkland officially dropped to third in the group and make their playoff road significantly harder. The Base Corps, dejected as they'd been many time before, quietly packed their things and headed to the locker room. They'd be getting ready to travel to Zwangzug soon, and with the last-inning loss, everybody just wanted to go home.

Lorraine sat on the stool next to her locker, packing her bag and taking off some of her equipment. She was still fuming, but her better judgement convinced her to not start a fight with Franklin Bell in the locker room. Then she received a surprise.

"Hey." Franklin Bell said behind her, quietly. Lorraine whipped around, the shock evident in her face.

"What are you doing here?" Lorraine spat, unbuttoning her jersey. "I hope you're here to apologize."

"You're right. I'm sorry." Bell said genuinely.

"You're- wait, what?" Lorraine stopped, confused.

"It was my fault." Bell subtly pointed a finger at his chest for emphasis. "This group stage run we've had ... it's been one of the best campaigns I can remember. So little negativity compared to the typical tournament. It's been refreshing. It's been rewarding. I felt like, for the first time in a very long time, we were turning the corner. I know you're mad, I know you're upset, and just trust me when I say I feel it too. I've felt this feeling more than anyone. I robbed you today, and I shouldn't have."

"What do you mean?"

"Your pitching this Classic has been amazing so far. It's inspiring, really. I haven't seen a Drawkian bullpen this energized in years. Even when we'd falter, you'd manage to pick our spirits up with your attitude or your pitching or your fire for the game. I just felt like I could feed off of that, today. I thought I could finally exorcise my demons thanks to you, but I was wrong. Instead, I took a moment that could've been yours, and I erased it entirely. I should've told Blant to keep you in for the ninth. I could've enjoyed watching this win from the bullpen, but instead I wanted to finally taste glory. I'm sorry."

"Do you really mean that?" Lorraine was starting to feel a little emotional. She was really friendly to her fellow pitchers and teammates but she didn't know they felt like that about her.

"I do. You've become what I was supposed to be, and it's like I'm trying to run you into the same direction. I won't do that anymore. I promise."

"You're not going to stop pitching, are you?" Lorraine gestured around the clubhouse. "We still need you. You may not be clutch, but you're still a legend to all of us. Your career began with perhaps the worst pitching mistake of all time, and you didn't let that discourage you. You've won championships in the league. You've racked up more saves than anybody else in history. You're even making a name for yourself overseas. You're my inspiration, because even though you went through hell, you kept pitching and kept it going. After every blowup loss I pitched in youth leagues and high school, I thought about you and how you came in every day and kept pitching, despite what happened."

Franklin didn't say anything, but he inclined his head a bit.

"I'm sorry for what I said earlier. It's been good having you on the team, even if you are a little weird." Lorraine extended her hand out.

Franklin grabbed her hand back and shook it.

"I don't know how this playoff run is going to go," Lorraine said, "but I will try to keep my energy up for all of you guys. Together, I think we can break this glass ceiling."

"Yeah." Franklin closed his eyes, frowning for a moment. He reopened his eyes and his face lightened a little bit. "We'll do it together."

by **South Newlandia** » Fri Apr 15, 2022 4:45 pm

Ah, Zwangzug. It’s a nice place to be, and barring a closer look, it might seem like a bigger version of the island South Newlandians call home. Chess, baseball, football, those are national pastimes of many great nations. Few or no cars, a unique economic structure, and restrictive drug laws, the similarities run deep. However, there are a few notable differences; most important for us here, while South Newlandia is just arriving at the arena of international sports and is rapidly building all kinds of stadiums all over the place, Zwangzug has been here for a while; they’re one of the best teams in the history of the World Baseball Classic, including a pair of titles and an astounding 14 medal finishes – although, admittedly, most South Newlandians weren’t born when Zwangzug captured most of these. The point is, Zwangzug has many older stadiums, including Aganath Stadium, described by visitors as “pretty cool”. This is the place where South Newlandia will take on the Greater Nordics in the Round of 32. Speaking of the Elephants, how did their group stage go?

Short answer: pretty cool. Memorable moments include a bottom-of-the-ninth walk-off home run by Zimmerman against Ethane, and a walk-off grand slam in the bottom of the ninth against Liventia by Adam King. Heading into the final match at Liventia, South Newlandia was 9-0, and had a chance to become the first undefeated baseball team in a WBC group stage since the impossible run of the ’31 Super-Llamaland Tigers. That’s so long ago, back then, Zwangzug had only 13 medal finishes! Okay, bad example, but it’s been nearly half a century. On that day, South Newlandia fell to Liventia 1-2, but they still enter the knockouts having scored 6.2 runs per game on average while surrendering only 2.4 per game, the latter being the best mark of any WBC team in this group stage. The rotation of Hunter, Gonzalo, Kramer, Bookmer and Conroy, which will also start in this order against The Greater Nordics, had been doing some magic. The bats had certainly been lively as well. Despite the shortened group stage, the Elephants’ power was at full display, and they’re hoping for another deep playoff run.

by **Quintessence of Dust** » Fri Apr 15, 2022 6:07 pm

The New Cleethorpes Enquirer
Hitting for the cycle? Kivistö wins fourth term

Natalia Kivistö has won an historic fourth term as President of Quintessence of Dust, defeating Philip Benoist in the second round run-off with over 60% of the vote. Mr Benoist called President Kivistö moments after the polls closed, conceding before any official returns had even been announced. The NeoLiberal President's historic fourth term coincided with the Things -- for whom, more than a century ago, she played -- winning their final game to advance to the playoffs of the World Baseball Classic in Zwangzug. Her second call, after the conversation with Mr Benoist, which she described as "very friendly", reflecting what most political analysts have described as the easiest of her four election wins, was to team captain Luka Chevalier, congratulating him on the victory. President Kivistö, who now regularly uses a cane in public, will not be travelling to Zwangzug to watch the Things attempt to defend their world title, but said she was "delighted" to talk with Chevalier.

Promising a continuation of "neoliberalism with Quodite characteristics", Kivistö broke with tradition to run for a third term four years ago, and has presided over a strong economy, continued advances in medical science, and peace, as well as stopping any of them moving in. Benoist's campaign focused on the need for change after what is now the longest Presidency in over two centuries of Quodite political life, but struggled to generate significant traction, winning only four districts, in the Social Democratic heartlands of the East. Kivistö swept every other district of the country, and recorded over 70% in the four western provinces.

The Things, meanwhile, put up a solid performance in the new single game format of the WBC group stage, dropping only two defeats. Worries over their arm barn, and especially their specialist left handers, persisted, but solid hitting from the Manslaughterer's Row and an excellent showing from all five starting pitchers proved sufficient. Unusually for the Things, they will now not switch to a four-person rotation for the playoffs, but will maintain the five-starter rotation.

by **Zwangzug** » Fri Apr 15, 2022 6:13 pm

Happy Jackie Robinson Day! We hope you are celebrating life, the universe, and everything.

United Adaikes          2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 9 11
South Americanastan     3 1 1 0 2 0 0 0 0  7

United Adaikes          2 0 3 0 3 3 1 0 0 12
South Americanastan     0 1 0 3 0 1 0 0 1  6

United Adaikes leads series, 2-0

Barnettsville           0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0  0
Milchama                0 1 0 0 0 2 0 0 X  3

Barnettsville           0 1 0 0 1 0 1 0 0  3
Milchama                0 1 0 5 0 0 1 3 X 10

Milchama leads series, 2-0

Ethane                  0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0  0
Nova Anglicana          0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1  1

Ethane                  0 0 0 0 0 1 1 0 0  2
Nova Anglicana          0 1 1 3 0 3 0 0 X  8

Nova Anglicana leads series, 2-0

Norrhem                 3 2 2 3 0 0 0 0 1 11
Quebec and Shingoryeo   0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 5  5

Norrhem                 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0  0
Quebec and Shingoryeo   1 0 2 0 1 0 0 0 X  4

Series tied, 1-1

Murderbum               0 0 3 0 0 0 0 0 1  4
Banija                  0 0 3 0 3 7 0 0 X 13

Murderbum               0 0 0 0 1 0 0 1 1  3
Banija                  0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0  1

Series tied, 1-1

Reorganized Portugal    0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 1  2
Kohnhead                0 0 1 2 0 1 0 0 X  4

Reorganized Portugal    0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0  0
Kohnhead                3 0 2 0 5 0 1 0 X 11

Kohnhead leads series, 2-0

Hapilopper              0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0  1
Liventia                0 1 0 0 0 0 0 1 X  2

Hapilopper              1 0 0 0 4 0 2 0 0  7
Liventia                3 2 0 3 0 2 0 0 X 10

Liventia leads series, 2-0

Tikariot                1 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0  2
Quintessence of Dust    0 0 0 1 0 0 3 0 X  4

Tikariot                1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0  1
Quintessence of Dust    0 1 1 0 0 1 0 0 X  3

Quintessence of Dust leads series, 2-0

The Greater Nordics     0 1 0 0 1 0 0 0 1  3
South Newlandia         0 0 1 0 0 3 0 1 X  5

The Greater Nordics     2 0 2 0 0 0 0 0 0  4
South Newlandia         0 0 1 0 2 0 3 0 X  6

South Newlandia leads series, 2-0

Eshialand               1 0 0 1 2 0 0 0 0  4
TJUN-ia                 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0  0

Eshialand               0 0 1 0 0 0 0 1 0  2
TJUN-ia                 3 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 X  4

Series tied, 1-1

Bardney                 0 1 1 0 1 1 0 2 0  6
Super-Llamaland         0 1 0 0 3 0 0 1 0  5

Bardney                 0 0 0  0 0 1 0 0 0  1
Super-Llamaland         0 0 2 12 0 0 0 6 X 20

Series tied, 1-1

Gortolekua              0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0  0
Ranoria                 0 0 0 0 3 0 8 0 X 11

Gortolekua              0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0  0
Ranoria                 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 4  4

Ranoria leads series, 2-0. Game 2 was originally scorinated as 6-0 in the ninth and has been rounded down. Thanks to SNL for catching this.

Drawkland               0 4 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0  5
The Sherpa Empire       0 0 1 1 1 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1  6

Drawkland               2 0 2 2 0 1 0 2 0 0 0 0  9
The Sherpa Empire       4 0 0 0 3 0 0 0 2 0 0 1 10

The Sherpa Empire leads series, 2-0

Brookstation            0 0 0 0 0 1 1 0 0  2
Chromatika              0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0  0

Brookstation            0 0 0 0 1 0 1 0 0  2
Chromatika              0 0 0 2 0 1 1 0 X  4

Series tied, 1-1

Kriegiersien            0 1 3 0 0 1 0 1 2  8
Mylderm                 0 0 0 1 0 0 1 0 0  2

Kriegiersien            1 0 0 1 1 1 0 0 1 1 0  6
Mylderm                 0 4 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 1 2  8

Series tied, 1-1

Edit: Quintessence of Dust scorinated my games and I forgot to post them!

Abanhfleft             0 1 0 2 0 0 0 0 0  3
Zwangzug               2 0 1 0 0 0 5 0 X  8

Abanhfleft             0 1 0 1 0 2 1 0 1  6
Zwangzug               0 0 2 0 5 0 0 0 X  7

Zwangzug leads series, 2-0

by **The Sherpa Empire** » Fri Apr 15, 2022 8:03 pm

Tsering Tenzing Chung was not the biggest star on the Sherpa national roster, but game 1 against Drawkland was his time to shine.

Kandola was all over the place. He seemed to be letting his nerves get to him, missing the placement of his pitches, struggling through long at-bats with too many balls, and too many long awkward pauses that just gave him more time to work himself up into more of a nervous wreck. When Pema Khan pulled him in the top of the 3rd, the Sherpas were down 5-0 and there were two runners on base.

Chung came in and got out of the jam -- and then proceeded to throw another 7 shutout innings while the Sherpa batters slowly chipped away at the Base Corps' lead. The game went into extra innings tied at 5.

There weren't all THAT many Sherpalanders in the crowd at Moore Field -- a lot of people could not afford to make the trip -- but there were a few, and as the Sherpas took the field in the top of the 10th, they started chanting "TSE-RING! TSE-RING!" with an occasional "JIA YOOOOOUUUUU!!!" ("Let's gooooooo!!!" in Chinese) thrown in.

They started chanting again when the Sherpas took the field in the top of the 11th, and it took a minute for the chanting to die down as they realized it was Gombu Park on the mound. Chung poked his head out of the dugout to wave to the ones doing the chanting, and they settled down, satisfied that they had made their point. But it didn't take that long before the fans decided they were still in a chanting mood, and they began chanting "GOM-BU! GOM-BU!"

It wasn't until the bottom of the 14th that the Sherpas finally managed to score a 6th run -- batted in by Haider Balouch, who had replaced Malam at 3rd base several innings earlier.

In the second game of the series, it was evident that both teams had worn out their bullpens. Sarki Sachdeva was not having a brilliant start, but Khan left him on the mound and Sachdeva was eager to stay in -- all because they were worried about running out of pitching if they went to the bullpen too early. Luckily for them, the Drawkians were facing similar challenges. It turned out to be another close game. Once again they went into extra innings, and once again the Sherpas came out on top.

By now everyone on the team was thoroughly exhausted. Even some of the fans back home were getting tired from staying up to watch the games.

(O.O) · by **TJUN-ia** » Sat Apr 16, 2022 4:29 am

After a 2nd-half slide was bookended by an emotional win in Portside, the Battin' Jags of TJUN-ia entered the fine board game obsessed nation of Zwangzug as the 15th seeds in all of Baseball. Our fall in the group stage was certainly...sharp and a wake-up call for a lot of people that this team can crash and burn...which is something that absolutely no one here would want to see happen. Now, everyone is just trying to root for the Battin' Jags no matter what as their final WBC Playoffs would begin soon. Phillip Hellas-Verona reflects the mood of the crowd and like them, he wants nothing more than for these legends to go out in style...and he will certainly try to help them along, beginning with the Owls of Eshialand at Salick Stadium in Inver.

Game 1
We begin with the two TJUN-ian "home" games, with no DH in play, and it started with Chris Harris vs Grant Porter. This game would be considered a tight one, but one where Ray Frounta's Owls would prevail with some clutch baseball. HRs from Kevin Dunbar, Connor Young and a 2-runner from Nathan Refey would be enough to see Harris packing and while Shin Suzuki certainly held his own out there, our bats were simply cold and that was that. 4-0, 1 game down.

Game 2
Davis Johnson vs Hannah Gray, on the other hand, would be a more competitive game on the scoreboard which certainly had many layers to it. It started with a bang as Steven Fulmer hit for home to get this important game on the right track. Refey would get one back as he was brought home by Evelyn Brown before a long break in the runs ramped up the pressure on all. Both teams would score in the 8th but in the end, the Jaguars did enough to win Game 2 4-2 and tie the series at 1-1.

Games 3 and 4 will be under the DH rules, so expect both Killian O'Mally and Harry Brentwood (in his proper role, with Tyler Gellar moving to 2B) to try and make an impact on proceedings. Everything is still up for grabs here in Inver and any slip up from either side could prove costly. GO JAGS!

Round of 32 vs Eshialand (16/#18/5-5/2nd in G7) @Salick Stadium, Inver, Zwangzug
G1: L 0-4 (0-1)
G2: W 4-2 (1-1)
G3:
G4:
G5:

by **Ko-oren** » Sat Apr 16, 2022 5:29 am

To chart a course for baseball, the twelve owners collectively ended the agreement of last year - this means that for a short while, owners are once again allowed to run their teams as they want, including moves or even merges and controlling a new franchise, as long as the total number of teams does not exceed 12.

After a week of rumours, but thankfully with little actual changes, the league organised an event to come up with a task force that will explore the potential avenues for Ko-orenite baseball in the near future, harnessing synergy across the owners, fanbases, and local governments in order to create social and sporting value and merit, to formalise a short, mid, and long term strategy, enable paradigm shifts through laying down a mission and a vision.

Several weeks later, the teams dismissed the task force and organised a vote. Every team's owner, captain, and fan base had one vote each for 36 total. The vote didn't concern 'will team x move to place y or not', but even more basic than that: 'who has the final say about how the league and its teams are managed'. The choices were simple: 1) the owners have final say over their team, 2) the owners propose matters for their own team, and are then voted on by the full group of owners, 3) the league has final say over each team, 4) the league may propose matters for each team, but the owners vote on whether it will be done. Note how the players and the fans have no say whatsoever - would you expect anything different? The unofficial fifth option was to write in your own suggestion.

After counting the owners' votes, it was 5-7-0-0. Adding the captains gave us our first abstentions - none of the options provided any support for players and ex-players - making the vote 5-7-4-6.

Then, the fanbases. They came together and each wrote the same novel of a response under option 5, containing all kinds of ifs and conditions about where their vote should go. 'If an owner wants to move a team to Finisterre or Yoshima, the owner should have final say, but if it's a move to elsewhere, the fanbase should have a say in how to compensate for the loss of their team, and often not getting a minor league team in return, so we have to ensure some geographic coverage in the heartland while allowing new fans access to the league, [...], but first and foremost, we recommend joining the LPB, and giving them a small say in these matters with the experience they have in administrating a successful league and making it stable.'

Several re-reads later, and we have a 5-7-4-6-12 vote telling the league and owners to look into joining the LPB. Now, whether the LPB would accept a moderately successful but severely disunified landscape is another matter.

by **Barnettsville** » Sat Apr 16, 2022 7:33 am

On the brink. Again.

ZWANGZUG - They made the playoffs, at least.

That's how it looks right now, as the Barnettsville Blue Jays have fallen 0-2 to the Warriors of Milchama. A 6-0 no-hitter and a 10-3 shellacking has your Jays on the brink of coming directly back to St. Catherine. The pitching - as it were - has been no match for the best in the world, which will make the original pitching staff hypothetically squeal with delight. Not to say that the Warrior offense is bad, not at all. EVERY mistake the pitchers have made, Milchama has jumped on like steak in front of a pride of lions.

Whether or not we pull off a minor upset, we have made slight progress. Journalists covering the team here have merely hoped for a closer game three, win or lose.

by **Quintessence of Dust** » Sat Apr 16, 2022 7:37 am

State of the Democratic States Address by President Natalia Kivistö

Mr Prime Minister, Members of Congress, my fellow Quodites,

I feel like we’ve been here before. This is not, nor second, nor even third time I have stood before you. The world around us is a very different place from when I first came before you as President, back in my giddy young 130s. Ah, what a callow whippersnapper I was back then…

New technologies emerge every day from the Pioneer Labs on Mars, flown back to enrich the lives of our citizens on the Earth and Moon. Deep Space 9¾’s mission continues apace as it enters Neptune orbit, bringing our civilization to its furthest ever point of human exploration.

Our economy grows, with growth up and employment down. The last tranche of tax cuts have liberated capital to invest in new buildings, build new enterprises, expand new horizons, and yet there is more we can do in this Congress to mobilize the incredible capital resources of this great nation.

There are still evils around us in the world. Too many people toil under the heavy wake of the dark doctrines of communism, socialism, or moderate social democracy; too many live in bondage, except the kinky ones who kinda like it, suffering under the tyrannic lash of slavery, barbarism, and (gags with emotion) income tax.

Superstitions abound and religious zealots beguile and mislead their public. Monarchs and emperors declaim from on high. The Democratic States continues to stand alone, a beacon of freedom and prosperity for all.

You have an elected an old woman, who has been called a gray haired relic of the past, to lead you once more in this new era, as challenges from terrorism, climate change, and NIMBYism impinge on the way of life we hold so valuable. And I will meet those challenges. I may walk a little slower now, and carry a sturdier cane. But I can promise you one thing, friends:

As long as I am your President I vow, and, as there’s a drive into deep left field by Weber and that will make it a 4–2 ball game.

by **Kriegiersien** » Sat Apr 16, 2022 8:51 am

The meat lover
Your magazine for good cuisine

Win and loss for Kriegiersien in the WBC 54.

The Play-Offs began and the starter was unbalanced.

Kriegiersien            0 1 3 0 0 1 0 1 2  8
Mylderm                 0 0 0 1 0 0 1 0 0  2

Kriegiersien            1 0 0 1 1 1 0 0 1 1 0  6
Mylderm                 0 4 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 1 2  8

The first game was like a good croissant, a perfect combination of layered butter and filled with chocolate and marzipan.

With this exhilaration followed the second game and ended in a piece of mouldy, dry bread.

Let's see what the main course brings us.

World Baseball Classic 54 (IC thread)

Batter Up!: A Much Needed Send Off

Lorraine Lockwood vs Franklin Bell

Batter Up!: Jags vs Blue Owls (Games 1+2)

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