World Baseball Classic 32 - Everything Thread

[Patistan]

*Chop Chop*
Here's your first...

"GROUP CUTOFF - WITH TWICE THE VITAMIN C AS SUNRICE"

[Patistan]

Tables on MD2

Group F
Jeckland                 0 1 1 0 1 0 0 0 0  3
Communist Eurasians      1 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0  2

Hicana                   0 0 1 0 0 2 1 0 0  4
England-Ireland          0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0  1

Crystal Empire           0 2 1 2 0 0 1 1 0  7
Naval Monte              0 3 5 1 0 0 0 0 X  9

Group G
The Fair Republic        0 0 0 0 1 0 0 2 0  3
Thebear                  0 0 0 1 3 2 0 0 X  6

Gregoryisgodistan        1 2 0 0 5 0 0 2 0 10
Greater Weselton         0 0 0 1 4 0 0 0 0  5

Cosumar                  0 0 1 0 0 1 0 2 0  4
Icrum                    0 1 0 0 0 1 0 1 0  3

Group H
Equestrian States        3 1 0 0 0 1 0 3 0  8
Arana                    0 0 1 0 1 0 0 0 0  2

San Jose Guayabal        0 6 1 0 0 0 0 0 0  7
UNITED WE STAND123       0 0 0 3 0 0 0 1 2  6

Estenia                  1 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0  2
New Matawan              1 2 0 6 0 0 0 0 X  9

[The Vjaal-Hakifao Northern Union]

GROUPS D AND E CUTOFF - WBC 32

Group D
Patistan                1 1 2 0 0 0 1 0 0  5
Joshulia                0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0  1

Milchama                0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 1  2
Williamstad             2 4 0 1 0 0 0 0 X  7

Wolfbenz                0 0 2 2 0 1 0 0 0  5
New North Aqmuland      0 0 2 0 0 2 3 0 X  7


  Group D                Pld    W   L    RF   RA   RD   Pts 
1 Williamstad              1    1   0     7    2   +5     1
2 Patistan                 1    1   0     5    1   +4     1
3 New North Aqmuland       1    1   0     7    5   +2     1
4 Wolfbenz                 1    0   1     5    7   −2     0
5 Joshulia                 1    0   1     1    5   −4     0
6 Milchama                 1    0   1     2    7   −5     0

Group E
Ko-oren                 1 0 0 1 1 2 0 0 0  5
Walamazia               1 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0  2

Maklohi Vai             0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0  1
Elykyellek              0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 3  4

Coconut Isle            0 0 0 1 1 0 1 0 0  3
Britonisea              0 0 1 0 0 2 0 0 2  5


  Group E                Pld    W   L    RF   RA   RD   Pts 
1 Ko-oren                  1    1   0     5    2   +3     1
2 Elykyellek               1    1   0     4    1   +3     1
3 Britonisea               1    1   0     5    3   +2     1
4 Coconut Isle             1    0   1     3    5   −2     0
5 Walamazia                1    0   1     2    5   −3     0
6 Maklohi Vai              1    0   1     1    4   −3     0

[Jeckland]

And your first cutoff arrives fashionably late (so sorry)

[Elykyellek]

Elykyellek defeats Maklohi Vai!

Maklohi Vai 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1
Elykyellek 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 3 4

Today Yellekan National of Elykyellek defeated the Lumai of Maklohi Vai 4-1. This one look eleven arduous innings to decide the winner. But unfortunately for Maklohi Vai, a late strong offensive push by Elykyellek allowed them to push ahead. Going into the bottom of the 11th inning, the game was tied 1-1. Elykyellek's first two batters, Ub Iwerks and Wilhelmina Kimball, were retired by Maklohi Vai's pitcher, Ru. With two outs, it looked like the game was going to be headed to the 12th inning, but then Elykyellek's Marc Davis hit a single, followed by another single by Paul Frees. Now with two outs and two on, Maklohi Vai opted for a pitching change bringing in Unrowai Lonma’ao from the bullpen. Tilda Ravenscroft came to the plate to face Unrowai Lonma’ao and with the count 2-2, Ravenscroft hit a 3 run home run into left field that ended the game.

Elykyellek's citizens are ecstatic with the win as baseball fever continues to sweep the nation. Many of Elykyellek's modest citizens don't expect the team to go very far and are honored that the team is even in the tournament, so every win, even in the group stage is cause for celebration.

[Jeckland]

Group A
Super-Llamaland                  2 1 2 0 0 0 0 1 1  7
Teague                           2 3 2 0 0 0 0 3 X 10

The Royal Kingdom of Quebec      0 0 1 0 0 0 1 2 1  5
Star United States               0 0 0 1 0 1 0 0 0  2

Abanhfleft                       0 1 1 0 0 2 1 0 0  5
The Qocaekian Isles              0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0  1


  Group A                         Pld    W   L    RF   RA   RD   Pts 
1 Abanhfleft                        1    1   0     5    1   +4     1
2 Teague                            1    1   0    10    7   +3     1
3 The Royal Kingdom of Quebec       1    1   0     5    2   +3     1
4 Super-Llamaland                   1    0   1     7   10   −3     0
5 Star United States                1    0   1     2    5   −3     0
6 The Qocaekian Isles               1    0   1     1    5   −4     0

Group B
Estope                           0 0 2 2 1 0 1 2 0  8
ViZion                           0 0 1 2 2 2 0 0 0  7

Diegstra                         1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1  2
Southern Democratic States       0 0 1 0 0 0 0 1 1  3

Paymina                          0 0 0 3 0 0 1 0 0 1 0 0  5
Pacificana Islands               0 0 0 0 0 0 1 3 0 1 0 2  7


  Group B                         Pld    W   L    RF   RA   RD   Pts 
1 Pacificana Islands                1    1   0     7    5   +2     1
2 Estope                            1    1   0     8    7   +1     1
3 Southern Democratic States        1    1   0     3    2   +1     1
4 ViZion                            1    0   1     7    8   −1     0
5 Diegstra                          1    0   1     2    3   −1     0
6 Paymina                           1    0   1     5    7   −2     0

Group C
Nova Anglicana                   0 0 2 0 0 0 2 0 0  4
Val Halla                        1 0 0 0 3 0 0 1 X  5

Nassau-Hessen                    0 0 1 0 1 0 0 0 0  2
United States of Devonta         0 1 0 0 0 0 2 2 X  5

Imota                            1 1 1 0 3 1 0 0 0  7
Thibaut                          0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0  1


  Group C                         Pld    W   L    RF   RA   RD   Pts 
1 Imota                             1    1   0     7    1   +6     1
2 United States of Devonta          1    1   0     5    2   +3     1
3 Val Halla                         1    1   0     5    4   +1     1
4 Nova Anglicana                    1    0   1     4    5   −1     0
5 Nassau-Hessen                     1    0   1     2    5   −3     0
6 Thibaut                           1    0   1     1    7   −6     0

[Coconut Isle]

The Furry Coconut

Our chances, and first matchday update
by Anthony Bjorn Chip Darian Edouard Ferdinand Giles Heston Ivor Jebediah Khan Lane Magnus Noel Ozzy Peyton Quinton Ricardo Sherman Tai Ulysses Vladimir Will Xander Yuri Zeb

Coconut Isle, a team that has already played in two baseball tournaments will go into this one unranked. But it'll be like they've never played baseball before, because they have not played in this tournament. The only way to do well in these tournaments is not to have prerequisite skills from a previous tournament - in our case, the International Baseball Slam - no, it's to repeatedly join the same tournament over and over again, until you get the desired results. People should know that by now, and it's very rare for this paradigm to shift.

So basically, we are at nil. And as our loss to Britonisea proves, our team has a lot more to learn. With use of the helpful chart provided by the authorities, Coconut Isle is sitting at fourth, as the best loser, losing by two runs to Britonisea, 3-5. The colouration seems random, with green on top and blue on the bottom with a splash of red in the middle? Was the person who designed this colour blind? Maybe red-green colour blind? I don't know, but I'm concerned. They should get their eyes checked out.

Anyways, we're up against Maklohi Vai next, who were the worst losers, losing to the team that I can't spell 4 runs to one. I suspect that result was a fluke, and that we will be crushed by them, like the Gregoryisgodistani who crushed our people in the IBS. I digress, because I didn't even watch the match today. I was busy throwing darts at a map of The Vjaal-Hakifao Northern Union, because I had no idea where the match was being played. Please, if anyone is listening, put down the venues, so I myself can give some insightful commentary. I can't choose from eight venues.

[Abanhfleft]

(OOC: This is dedicated to Cosumar. Zach and Alice's story continues here!)

Dissociation, Part Seven

Releinthi Police Department headquarters
Releinthi, Abanhfleft

It had been three days since Zach Tyler had contracted an old Army buddy of his, Raum “Raisa” Negotov, to be on the lookout for his missing daughter Alice. It had been four days since Alice went into her second dissociative fugue episode. Every time Zach’s cellphone rang, he hoped that it was someone calling him to tell him that they had found his daughter. He didn’t care who found her; just that Alice was finally back in his arms. It could be Milla Katz, Alice’s BFF. It could be Raum Negotov. Hell, sometimes Zach hoped that it was Alice herself that would be calling him from wherever she had snapped out of her fugue. But, no; every call that he received was just one of his investigators calling for some kind of assistance in their case or something like that.

Now even Alice’s disappearance was slowly being shoved into the back of Zach’s mind by the death of Rudolf Thurston, the driver of the truck that had crashed into his minivan and caused his wife to slip into a coma. There was just something that didn’t add up with the facts that he had about the man’s untimely death. No one had confessed to killing Thurston, and Zach was sure that no one ever will. He had investigated his fair share of contract killings and gangland retributions to not even bother.

Rudolf Thurston had said in his “confession” that he had been ordered to crash his truck into Zach’s minivan by Yasenev-Kellerman-Ignacio. Therefore that meant that YKI had put a price on Zach’s head. But that didn’t make sense, at least from his point of view. Zach had never been heavily involved in any PD investigation into YKI since their turf was not within his precinct, and therefore there was no reason for the group to want to eliminate him.

The only answer that Zach could come up with was that Thurston’s “confession” had been some inmate’s idea of a very cruel joke. Either that, or for some unknown reason YKI had set its sights on him, Kimber, or Alice.

The only way to settle the matter once and for all was to look through all the old case files; specifically, deaths of female teenagers and young adults linked to gangs and organized crime during 2008 that wasn’t a result of the Holy Catholic Revolution. Since he was an inspector first class, no one questioned him when he began taking out those old case files. As he read about the suicides, homicides, and fratricides of young women in 2008, the pieces slowly began to fall into place in front of Zach.

Maria Helena Josefina “Helen” Ignacio was the daughter of notorious criminal overlord Cirilo Ignacio, and the younger sister of Maria Katrina Saturnina Ignacio, more commonly known by her street name “Big Kate.” Despite being just sixteen years old before her death, her rap sheet was longer Zach’s arm, and there was no doubt in his mind that it would have grown longer were it not for her untimely death on September 14, 2008 at the hands of unknown gunmen, possibly working for YKI’s rivals, the Huesca Cartel. This Helen Ignacio went down along with three other members of YKI in a suspected gangland hit that was supposed to be on Roberto Ignacio, now the new head of the Ignacio crime family.

Now Zach could finally understand, even for just a little bit, what exactly was going on, what his daughter had unknowingly started, and what it meant for her and him. He could imagine Big Kate Ignacio mourning for her dead younger sister when suddenly there’s word on the street that there was some girl out there claiming to share the same name with her sister. And this girl even supposedly looked like the real Helen; Zach had looked at Helen Ignacio’s photo and was almost shocked out of his seat by her uncanny resemblance to Alice. Big Kate would probably surely want to have a nice little chat with this new Helen, but luckily for Alice she managed to snap out of her fugue before YKI could get its hands on her. But now Alice was missing for four days now, and going on five days. The chances of YKI learning about the other Helen’s reappearance grew bigger by the day, and Zach knew that it was only a matter of time before either Alice snapped out of her second fugue, or YKI finally manages to nab her.

So when Zach answered the call that he received on the afternoon of the fourth day after Alice’s disappearance, he was still hoping that it was someone telling him that they had finally found Alice. But he didn’t really fool himself with such thoughts now. “Yeah, what is it?” he asked whoever was at the other end. He didn’t really look at the number calling him.

“What is it, man?” Zach said as he sat up straighter in his seat. “Do you have anything about Alice? Is she with you? Do you have her?”

“I have something about her,” Raum “Raisa” Negotov replied. “But I don’t think you’re going to like it.”

“Why?” A sinking feeling fell down the pit of Zach’s gut. “She’s not… dead, is she?”

“No, Zach, not yet she’s not,” Negotov replied. “But she might as well be. I saw her down on the street just now. She was then approached by this woman, the one from that big criminal family with the Russians, the Americans, and the Hispanics. They got into a shouting fight, and then more guys popped out, surrounded Alice, and then took her.”

“Oh, my God!” Zach almost shouted. “Where did they take her? Did you see where?”

“I saw their van go as far as that warehouse on the waterfront, on Sing Sing Avenue.”

“Oh, my God,” Zach repeated. “Dear God, Alice, what have you gotten yourself into now?”

“If it helps, Zach,” Negotov added, “I think they just wanted to know why your daughter is walking around using the name of Big Kate’s dead younger sister.”

“How did you know that, Raum?”

“It’s Raisa now, Zach. And they were shouting right in front of my bedroom. How can you not know whatever it is they’re talking about when two women raise their voices right in front of your bedroom?”

“All right, all right. So, the warehouse near the waterfront on Sing Sing, right?”

“Roger that.” Sometimes, ingrained military training died hard, even for a transsexual like Negotov.

“I’ll be there as soon as I can.” As Zach ended the call, tears finally began to flow from his eyes. His daughter was now in the hands of one of the biggest and most dangerous criminal organizations, and while he knew that he could definitely rescue Alice, he was still powerless to snap her out of her fugue.

“Goddamn you to hell, Hermenegildo Sanchez!” Zach said, more to release pent-up anger than actually blaming the long-dead drug lord for his daughter’s current condition.

All the PD knew was that Alice had gone missing. Zach didn’t mention anything about her fugue. Things would just grow even more complicated if the PD ever found out about Alice’s fugue, and so Zach knew that to save Alice he would have to do it alone, without any backup. He couldn’t call on Danni Diekstra to help him because even though they were close friends, she was still part of the PD. And there was no way that Raum Negotov would ever help him mount a raid on some criminals. The Kazakh had made it very clear that were it not for Abanhfleft’s compulsory military service, he would never have become a soldier in the first place. Therefore it was only Zach that could save Alice.

Zach left the PD headquarters just as night began to fall on Releinthi, as had been his custom after Kimber had been confined to the hospital. Zach drove to the hospital, and he took up the same vigil that he had been doing ever since he was in good enough shape to do so. But now, instead of just waiting silently for his wife to finally wake up, Zach now felt the need to talk to her about what was going on with his life.

“Hey, Kim,” Zach said, taking his wife’s hand in his. “Listen, sorry if I’ve been a little bit quiet for most of the time that I’ve been here with you. I’ve got a lot of things on my mind lately, and not all of them have been very good. But there’s something that I should tell you, and you deserve to hear it because it’s about your daughter.

“There’s no easy way to say this, Kim, but Alice has gone into yet another fugue. Now she’s been kidnapped by the thugs of YKI, because her second identity shares the same name with the dead sister of Big Kate Ignacio. You know, one of the most wanted women in the country. Yeah, I thought you wouldn’t believe it, too. Anyway, I haven’t told anyone else about Alice’s second fugue. Except Dr. Portucale, of course, but he doesn’t really count because he’s a doctor. All the PD knows is that she’s gone missing. You wanna know how I found out Alice had been kidnapped? Well, it’s kind of a funny story, really. You remember Raum Negotov? You know, one of my buddies from back in Verbergerkinnh? Would you believe that he’s a tranny now? Anyway, I met up with Raum again because I thought Alice might end up in his area, and it turned out that he saw the kidnapping himself.

“You wanna know the other reason that I’m still here with you instead of out there, saving our daughter? Well, you know, I figured that maybe I should just drop by here tonight and say goodbye to you once again. Although I’ve survived worse than a hundred armed gangsters, there’s always the off chance that maybe one of those bastards will get lucky and nail me. And even then, I still have no idea when she’ll snap out of her fugue, after I save her.

“All right, now I’m just delaying the inevitable. I will eventually have to go out there and save Alice. I know this won’t be our last goodbye, Kim, but if it is, then at least I said goodbye when I should have.” Zach then stood up, kissed his wife’s forehead, and then he walked out of her room.

There was a nondenominational chapel on the way from Kimber’s room to the hospital parking lot, and so, in one of the rare instances in his life, Zach Tyler went into the chapel to pray. Zach knelt down on a pew, and he prayed.

“Lord, give me the strength to save my daughter Alice,” Zach prayed. “She’s in the clutches of some evil people right now, and I know I will need everything that I have and more just to save her. But, God, most important of all, I want Alice to finally snap out of her fugue. I just can’t stand looking at her and knowing that she thinks that she’s someone else entirely. Lord, if this is one of your tests, then it’s not funny. But I know I will overcome it the way that You want me to overcome it. It’s just that it really sucks to see my daughter think that she’s someone else.” After that, Zach could think of nothing more to say, and so he just ended his prayer, made the sign of the cross, and he walked out of the chapel and on to the hospital parking lot.

Zach drove back to their house in Ebelgorze District, the seeds of a plan already planted in his mind. If he was going to save Alice from YKI, then it wouldn’t be as Inspector First Class Zachary Tyler, Fleftic National Police (Lieutenant-select), but as Zach Tyler, dedicated parent and determined father. There had been lots of times that Zach should’ve been there for Alice when she was growing up, but circumstances had prevented him from doing just that. Tonight, though, he was absolutely determined that this was a day that he was not going to be not there for his daughter.

Zach changed out of his suit and changed into some proper middle-class worker’s clothes. He put on a blue shirt that had definitely seen better and cleaner days, a pair of old but reliable denim pants, a thick woollen jacket that was once white but was now closer to black than grey, and his old running trainers from when he still jogged daily as part of a now-forgotten fitness regimen. With his clothes, Zach had managed to transform himself from a clean-cut police inspector into an average hardworking middle-class dad. And while he was certainly neither average nor middle-class, he was working very hard to become a good father to Alice. Now all he had to was to go into that YKI warehouse and save, and after that all he had to worry about was waiting for Alice to finally snap out of her fugue.

Zach topped off his disguise with a green cap bearing the Russian flag on its front, to further confuse both casual observers and the enemy, and then he pulled on a pair of cotton work gloves before he locked up the house and hid his keys under a potted plant beside the door, and then he walked over to the next block and hailed a taxi from there. He told the driver to take him to a multi-story parking lot ally the way across the town from Ebelgorze. He paid cash before he got off, and he told the driver to keep the change. Zach walked up to the third floor of the parking lot, and he looked around for a little bit before he found what he was looking for, a black and gold Imponte Ruiner. The Ruiner had once been the property of one Ivan Weidenfeller, a two-bit lowlife whose job description could be accurately summed up as gang protection money collector. Zach had been assigned to his case after someone finally gathered up the courage to report the gangster, and after a short but exhilarating rooftop chase, the East German bastard had admitted that he was just doing it to protect himself from the gangs themselves. Zach had agreed to let the lowlife bastard get away, on the condition that Weidenfeller should never set foot in Releinthi again, or else Zach will come down on him harder than a wall of bricks. The German had run for the first flight out of Releinthi so fast that he left behind some assets and properties, and then it was just a matter of Zach transferring his name to Weidenfeller’s former apartment and bar, and of course the Ruiner. Zach may be a clean cop, but that didn’t mean he didn’t make the occasional dip into the pockets of captured felons. Of course, he paid the proper taxes for all these new acquisitions of his, but obviously he didn’t let his family know about them.

Zach walked up to the Ruiner, squeezing in between it and the SUV parked beside it to reach the trunk. He opened up the trunk, which contained nothing except a spare tire, a jack, and a tire wrench, or so it would seem. Zach took out the spare tire, and then he grabbed a handhold that was very well hidden that Zach wouldn’t know where it was had he not been the one who had it made. The handhold removed a false panel in the boot, which revealed a secret compartment underneath. Having that secret compartment installed into the Ruiner had cost Zach a few favors from the PD’s mechanics, and he had made them swear to not tell another soul, on policemen’s honor. Back then, it had been just a bit of wish fulfilment on his part; he had wanted to become a spy, like James Bond, when he was young. Now, the secret compartment and its contents had become a worthwhile investment, at least in Zach’s part.

Inside the secret compartment was a Type 56 rifle, a Chinese clone of the veritable AK-47. Along with it were six empty “banana” magazines, so named because of their distinctive shape, and two full boxes of 7.62 millimeter ammunition. Zach took the Type 56 out of the hidden compartment and checked its mechanisms. Once he was satisfied that the rifle was still in working order, he returned it back into the compartment, and then he returned the false panel and the spare tire into the boot before he closed it. Zach got into the Ruiner and drove it out of the parking lot and to an abandoned property just a few minutes of walking away from the warehouse on the waterfront of Sing Sing Avenue where Raum Negotov had said that YKI was keeping Alice.

Zach stepped out of the car once again, and opened the boot. He took the magazines out of the hidden compartment and began loading them with ammunition. One of the first things that he had learned out in the field for the Fleftic Army was that it was better to keep mags unloaded when they weren’t needed so as to preserve their feeder springs, or else the spring could lose some of its springiness and cause a feed jam. That little bit of knowledge had saved Zach’s life quite a few times in Verbergerkinnh, and he knew that it wouldn’t fail him for this mission.

Zach then took out what looked like a bundle of dark blue cloth bundle from underneath the Type 56, which turned out to be a ballistic combat vest. Zach put the vest over his shirt and under his jacket, and then he stuck the magazines into pouches in the front of the vest. He fed a fresh mag into the Type 56, pulled back the cocking handle, and then he checked the chamber and saw that there was a round in it.

Zach Tyler was now ready for war. He had his Type 56. He had his PD-issued Glock pistol. And he also had a small five-shot revolver in a hidden ankle holster in case of emergencies. He expected a brutal and heavy fight from the YKI gangsters guarding the warehouse, and he had deliberately overloaded himself with firepower since he was doing this alone, without any backup. And all this firepower was more than enough to save his daughter from the clutches of Yasenev-Kellerman-Ignacio.

[Imota]

ISports, Vol. 25, Issue 49 (WBC 32 Special)

Starting Strong: Sunwings Scorch Thibaut to Open Classic

Imota                            1 1 1 0 3 1 0 0 0  7
Thibaut                          0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0  1

The Sunwings got off to a solid start to their Classic 32, hitting Thibaut for seven runs while allowing just one on the road. The win was the sole non-upset in the group as well as the game with the largest margin of victory, putting Imota in first place for now.

The scoring started in the top of the first. Akane Isshiki led off with a single, and was promptly singled to second by Yuzuki Shimizu. Isshiki then made for Sadaharu Takamori’s strikeout by narrowly stealing third, before making it home on a Saki Lilienthal double.

The second and third innings saw the Suwings extend their lead to three runs on more small ball. Starter Makoto Kikuchi himself laid down a perfect bunt to score Chie Yakumo in the second, and Takamori scored on a bases loaded bloop single from Senjirou Ushiromiya in the third. The wheels really fell off for Thibaut in the fifth, when Lilienthal demonstrated her cleanup hitter credentials by blasting a 2-2 curveball into the right field stands for three, making it 6-0. Although Thibaut hit back with a run on two singles and a walk in the home half of the fifth, the Sunwings immediately wiped it away with an RBI single by Shimizu, followed up with four perfect innings from Kikuchi to send Thibaut into the loss column.

Lilienthal was easily the offensive star of the game, going 2 for 5 with a home run and four batted in. Defensively, third baseball Kantarou Futaki did well to rob Thibaut of several almost-hits, while Kikuchi went all nine frames, allowed just six hits and two walks, and fanned ten.

Elsewhere in the group, upsets reigned as Nova Anglicana and Nassau-Hessen both fell. Imota’s next game will see them play their home opener against USD, who the Hessians to take second. Sakuya Izayoi will start.

Group C                         Pld    W   L    RF   RA   RD   Pts 
1 Imota                             1    1   0     7    1   +6     1
2 United States of Devonta          1    1   0     5    2   +3     1
3 Val Halla                         1    1   0     5    4   +1     1
4 Nova Anglicana                    1    0   1     4    5   −1     0
5 Nassau-Hessen                     1    0   1     2    5   −3     0
6 Thibaut                           1    0   1     1    7   −6     0

[Patistan]

Can the winners keep winning
Can the losers not keep losing

Find out cause this your MD2 group cutoff

[Patistan]

Group F
Communist Eurasians      1 0 1 0 1 0 0 0 0  3
Naval Monte              1 0 0 0 0 1 2 0 X  4

England-Ireland          0 0 0 1 0 0 0 2 0  3
Crystal Empire           0 0 0 0 0 0 1 1 0  2

Jeckland                 0 0 0 2 0 0 1 0 0  3
Hicana                   0 0 2 0 1 1 0 0 X  4

                          Pld    W   L    RF   RA   RD   Pts 
1 Hicana                    2    2   0     8    4   +4     2
2 Naval Monte               2    2   0    13   10   +3     2
3 Jeckland                  2    1   1     6    6    0     1
4 England-Ireland           2    1   1     4    6   −2     1
5 Communist Eurasians       2    0   2     5    7   −2     0
6 Crystal Empire            2    0   2     9   12   −3     0

Group G
Thebear                  1 0 0 0 0 2 2 0 0  5
Icrum                    0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0  1

Greater Weselton         0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 1  2
Cosumar                  0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0  0

The Fair Republic        0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1  1
Gregoryisgodistan        4 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 X  4

                          Pld    W   L    RF   RA   RD   Pts 
1 Gregoryisgodistan         2    2   0    14    6   +8     2
2 Thebear                   2    2   0    11    4   +7     2
3 Cosumar                   2    1   1     4    5   −1     1
4 Greater Weselton          2    1   1     7   10   −3     1
5 Icrum                     2    0   2     4    9   −5     0
6 The Fair Republic         2    0   2     4   10   −6     0

Group F
Arana                    0 0 0 0 0 0 0 2 1  3
New Matawan              1 1 0 0 2 0 0 2 X  6

UNITED WE STAND123       1 1 0 0 0 0 1 0 0  3
Estenia                  0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 1  2

Equestrian States        0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0  0
San Jose Guayabal        1 0 2 0 1 0 0 0 X  4

                          Pld    W   L    RF   RA   RD   Pts 
1 New Matawan               2    2   0    15    5  +10     2
2 San Jose Guayabal         2    2   0    11    6   +5     2
3 Equestrian States         2    1   1     8    6   +2     1
4 UNITED WE STAND123        2    1   1     9    9    0     1
5 Estenia                   2    0   2     4   12   −8     0
6 Arana                     2    0   2     5   14   −9     0

[The Vjaal-Hakifao Northern Union]

Group D
Joshulia                2 1 0 1 0 0 0 0 2  6
New North Aqmuland      0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0  0

Williamstad             1 2 0 2 0 0 1 0 0  6
Wolfbenz                0 0 0 0 1 1 0 0 0  2

Patistan                0 0 0 1 0 1 0 0 0  2
Milchama                0 0 0 7 0 0 0 0 X  7


  Group D                Pld    W   L    RF   RA   RD   Pts 
1 Williamstad              2    2   0    13    4   +9     2
2 Joshulia                 2    1   1     7    5   +2     1
3 Milchama                 2    1   1     9    9    0     1
4 Patistan                 2    1   1     7    8   −1     1
5 New North Aqmuland       2    1   1     7   11   −4     1
6 Wolfbenz                 2    0   2     7   13   −6     0

Group E
Walamazia               0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0  1
Britonisea              0 3 0 0 0 0 0 0 X  3

Elykyellek              0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0  1
Coconut Isle            0 0 0 0 0 0 0 4 X  4

Ko-oren                 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0  0
Maklohi Vai             0 0 0 0 0 0 1 2 X  3


  Group E                Pld    W   L    RF   RA   RD   Pts 
1 Britonisea               2    2   0     8    4   +4     2
2 Coconut Isle             2    1   1     7    6   +1     1
3 Elykyellek               2    1   1     5    5    0     1
  Ko-oren                  2    1   1     5    5    0     1
5 Maklohi Vai              2    1   1     4    4    0     1
6 Walamazia                2    0   2     3    8   −5     0

[Nova Anglicana]

Lion's Roar

A SportsWorld Weblog

It's That Time Again
by Alpha Lion



Picard=The public. Data=The Lions.

It just wouldn't be a WBC without the Lions dropping a baffling game to an unranked nation in stunning fashion. And they obliged yesterday, losing 5-4 to a very underwhelming Val Halla team. It always happens just this way. The Lions are set up with an easy group, people predict eight or nine wins, and they somehow slop their way to six wins and a playoff spot. This year, the competition was laughable at first glance. Three unranked nations and no team ranked above 29th in the world. Our WBC 31 co-hosts, Imota turned up in our group, but they are ranked 37th and in the midst of a tough stretch. They would have given us a good game regardless of their rank, but I now wonder if I can say the same thing about our team. If we can't get our ish together against a weakling like Val Halla, then how can we expect to play well against a disciplined and veteran squad like Imota?

The Val Hallans got a solo homer from their #3 guy in the first, but otherwise, Felix Murphy looked good in the first four innings. Five strikeouts without a walk and just two hits had him rolling. The Lions' offense took a little while to get started, but in the third inning, Barry Glover drew a leadoff walk and Murphy sacrificed him over. Lance Manning laid another bunt down, and there were runners on first and third. Josh Heckman struck out, but the catcher dropped the third strike and Manning moved up to second with two outs. The Val Hallans decided to pitch to Kelvin Freeman, and he lashed a double down the right field line that scored two and put the Lions in the lead.

In the bottom of the fifth, things fell apart. Murphy issued a leadoff walk, and after striking out the next batter, hit the 8-hole hitter. Ouch. The pitcher laid down a good sacrifice, and there were runners at third and second. The leadoff hitter beat out an infield single that Jarrod Novak bobbled, and the score was tied. The next batter doubled, and the man on first flew around the bases to score the Val Hallans' fourth run. Murphy would strike out the #3 hitter, but the damage had been done. In the 7th, the Val Hallan pitcher was still going, having allowed only five hits and a walk to that point. Jarrod Novak showed that he's still got it at age 34, stretching a long single into a double when the Val Hallan left fielder was slow to get the ball in to the infielders. They walked Barry Glover intentionally to force a pinch-hitter for Murphy. Graig Lowman sent up the switch-hitting Chris Fletcher to counter any possible relievers. Fletcher drove one deep into right-center field, but the Val Hallan center fielder ran it down, though Novak was able to move up to third. Lance Manning followed with a sharp RBI single to pull the Lions within one, and Josh Heckman looked to have tied the game when he singled on the next pitch, but a strong relay throw cut Glover down at the plate. Fortunately, Kelvin Freeman came through again and singled home Manning to tie the score.

Donté Smiley pitched a perfect 7th, and after the Lions went down 1-2-3 in the 8th, Danny Hauser came on to keep the score tied. The usual setup man, Kyle Pauley, was not used, though he is getting on in age at 34. Hauser is a young flamethrower and Lowman probably thought he could overwhelm them. Hauser looked good, blowing away the first two hitters on seven fastballs ranging from 96-99 MPH. But the #3 hitter managed to pull one that snuck just inside the foul pole, doing the Carlton Fisk dance the whole way down the first base line. 5-4 to the Val Hallans. And then Glover, Al-Aniz, and Manning could not muster a single hit against the Val Hallan closer, leaving the Lions defeated, disappointed, and disgusted.


Perhaps there is some truth to the concerns about the team's age. Maybe they've just lost a step and can't keep up. I hope not. In any case, they need to find their pride (no pun intended) and start playing like they deserve that shiny #6 ranking. Let's go, boys. Nassau-Hessen is next, in Archbishop Stadium.


More from Lion's Roar
Goalfest against Farfadillis Ends With a Loss
Lumberjacks are in the Quarters!
Should Lowman Call It Quits After This WBC?

(OOC: Logo at top shamelessly cribbed from Pride of Detroit, Detroit Lions blog.)

[Jeckland]

This cut-off is on time! Can you believe it?

[Jeckland]

Group A
Teague                           0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0  1
The Qocaekian Isles              2 0 1 0 1 0 0 0 X  4

Star United States               2 0 1 2 0 0 1 0 0  6
Abanhfleft                       3 0 2 0 0 0 0 0 0  5

Super-Llamaland                  1 2 0 2 1 1 1 0 1  9
The Royal Kingdom of Quebec      0 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0  2


  Group A                         Pld    W   L    RF   RA   RD   Pts 
1 Super-Llamaland                   2    1   1    16   12   +4     1
2 Abanhfleft                        2    1   1    10    7   +3     1
3 Teague                            2    1   1    11   11    0     1
4 The Qocaekian Isles               2    1   1     5    6   −1     1
5 Star United States                2    1   1     8   10   −2     1
6 The Royal Kingdom of Quebec       2    1   1     7   11   −4     1

Group B
ViZion                           0 0 0 1 0 0 0 1 1  3
Pacificana Islands               0 0 0 0 0 1 1 3 X  5

Southern Democratic States       0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0  1
Paymina                          0 2 0 4 1 0 0 0 X  7

Estope                           2 0 5 0 1 0 1 2 0 11
Diegstra                         1 0 0 0 2 0 3 0 0  6


  Group B                         Pld    W   L    RF   RA   RD   Pts 
1 Estope                            2    2   0    19   13   +6     2
2 Pacificana Islands                2    2   0    12    8   +4     2
3 Paymina                           2    1   1    12    8   +4     1
4 Southern Democratic States        2    1   1     4    9   −5     1
5 ViZion                            2    0   2    10   13   −3     0
6 Diegstra                          2    0   2     8   14   −6     0

Group C
Val Halla                        0 0 4 0 1 3 1 2 0 11
Thibaut                          0 0 0 0 4 0 0 0 0  4

United States of Devonta         2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0  2
Imota                            0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0  1

Nova Anglicana                   0 0 0 1 0 0 0 2 0  3
Nassau-Hessen                    3 1 1 0 0 2 0 0 X  7


  Group C                         Pld    W   L    RF   RA   RD   Pts 
1 Val Halla                         2    2   0    16    8   +8     2
2 United States of Devonta          2    2   0     7    3   +4     2
3 Imota                             2    1   1     8    3   +5     1
4 Nassau-Hessen                     2    1   1     9    8   +1     1
5 Nova Anglicana                    2    0   2     7   12   −5     0
6 Thibaut                           2    0   2     5   18  −13     0

[Elykyellek]

Elykyellek Loses

Elykyellek              0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0  1
Coconut Isle            0 0 0 0 0 0 0 4 X  4

Another 4-1 game but this time with Elykyellek on the losing side. Janna Fowler gave up 4 runs to Coconut Isle in the bottom of the 8th and the game was all over. At the press conference after the game Elykyellek's manager, Waldemar Dana, said he believed the team could overcome this loss and sees them in the championship. But then again many people believe Waldemar Dana has lined his cap with tin foil.

[Abanhfleft]

Dissocation, Part Eight

Warehouse 357, Sing Sing Avenue
Releinthi, Abanhfleft

It was raining heavily when Zach Tyler finally moved out of the abandoned lot where he had parked his Ruiner and towards the warehouse where an old Army buddy of his had said that the notorious Yasenev-Kellerman-Ignacio gang had taken his daughter Alice hostage. From the outside, the warehouse looked like any other abandoned warehouse in the immediate vicinity, with no sign of any human habitation. But Zach was absolutely sure that there were God knows how many gangsters inside the building. Zach took a roundabout path towards the warehouse, making sure to keep himself hidden from any guards that might be watching. He arrived underneath a sheltered alcove near a small door leading into the warehouse. There was a single guard posted there, a heavyset Slavic-looking guy who was a head shorter than Zach, and he was facing away from the intruder.

Zach shouldered his rifle, crept up slowly behind the guard, and then he grabbed the guard's head and neck. The guy's bigness was more fat than muscle, because his struggles were feeble despite Zach not yet even holding him in a death grip. Zach then made to twist the guard's head, like opening a jar of jam. There was a faint pop as the guard's skull was detached from his spinal column, and his body then went limp. Zach carefully laid the body down on the ground, careful not to make a sound. He then checked the guard's equipment. He was packing some kind of boxy-looking submachine, more like an Ingram MAC-10 than an Uzi, and maybe three or four spare magazines. Zach also found three grenades in the guy's pockets, which he took and stuffed into his own pockets. "That's gonna help me a little bit more," he muttered to himself. He also took the guy's SMG, plus the mags. There was no such thing as enough firepower for one-man armies.

Zach carefully continued into the warehouse. As he went deeper, he could now hear voices within the warehouse. They were mostly the bored conversations of guards on duty, trying to protect whatever it was they were protecting while knowing at the same time that they wouldn't really be attacked anytime soon. That's all about to change, though, buddies, Zach thought to himself as he took up a firing position behind a thick concrete wall with waist-high openings. Just as he prepared to fire, though, he then heard two female voices, rising above the general din of rain striking the metal roofing of the warehouse.

"All right, bitch, here's the deal," a woman whose voice was right now unfamiliar to Zach said. "You want to walk out of here alive? Well, I just want you to answer me this one question. One question, one answer, and then you're free to go. A'ight?"

"Go to hell!" another woman said, and this time Zach recognized it as Alice's voice. Oh, Jesus Christ, what is happening to my daughter? he thought.

"I have this friend of mine, name of Big Kate Ignacio," the first woman said. "She wants me to ask you why you've taken on the name of her dead sister?"

"Fuck!" Alice shouted in reply. "I didn't take the name of Big Kate's dead sister. This was the name I was given when I was born!"

"Oh, really? Then why do some of my other friends tell me that your real name is Alicia Rosalyn Tyler, of Ebelgorze District, daughter of Inspector Zachary Tyler of the FNP? You have some serious explaining to do, my friend."

"The only serious explaining I'm gonna say is up yours, bitch!" Alice shouted defiantly. "Besides, your friends have it all wrong! My father isn't some crocodile inspector, he was killed by the fucking Catholic haters during the revolution!"

"All right," the first woman said, and Zach could imagine her shrugging her shoulders at Alice's obstinacy. "Have it your way. I have ways of making you talk. By the time I'm done with you, you will tell me every secret that you have hiding behind that pretty face of yours. Also, you won't be as fucking pretty as you used to be."

That's your fucking signal, man, Zach said to himself. He cast a look around the ground floor of the warehouse. There were at least a dozen guards posted there, and he could see barrels of what looked to be ANFO, or ammonium nitrate and fuel oil. Shit, he thought to himself. There was enough explosive here to send the entire island of Releinthi into orbit. He took out two of the grenades that he took from the guard that he had killed, pulled their pins, and then flipped off their spoons. He let the grenades cook for two seconds, and then he tossed them into the stacks of barrels of ANFO like a bowler. One of the guards who heard the slight tinkling noise of the rolling grenades turned around and saw the two pineapple-shaped explosives rolling towards the barrels. He made to yell out a warning, but then the grenades detonated. The ANFO followed soon after, in what explosives experts called a sympathetic detonation, and the whole warehouse was immediately bathed in red and yellow light from the explosions and subsequent fires.

While the guards were distracted, Zach put the Type 56 up to his shoulder, aimed at the center mass of one of the surviving guards, and pulled the trigger. The guard went down, three bullets having pierced his torso. The other guards turned around to face this new threat, firing off their weapons in one single loud barrage of bullets. But Zach had chosen his hiding place properly, and the bullets just smashed into the thick concrete wall, chipping off blocks of the material but never really fully penetrating. If they had been armed with assault rifles just like he was, then maybe Zach would have been a little more scared. But they were mostly armed with SMGs, and bullets fired from such weapons never really had enough penetrating power to break through the concrete.

From his protected vantage point, Zach could slowly and deliberately pick off his enemies with ease, but he knew that he would soon have to move to another location before the gangsters tried to rush him. He used a break in the firefight to dash towards a support column, reloading his rifle in the process. Once he was safely behind the pillar, he fired off a wild burst and shouted, "This is the end for all of you!" Suddenly, a head popped up from above Zach's position, and he held some kind of machine pistol. Both Zach and the gangster were surprised with each other, but Zach was quicker to recover, and he fired a burst at the gangster's head, the most visible target for him. The top of the guy's head vanished in a cloud of pink mist, and the machine pistol dropped to the ground. Zach picked it up and then emptied it into the few remaining guards still alive on the ground floor of the warehouse.

Zach finally picked off the last of the gangsters on the ground floor with his rifle, and he slung it over his shoulder and took out the captured MAC-10 as he began to walk towards the stairs. When he saw another guard pop out from his hiding place in the second floor, Zach fired a wild burst from the Ingram, and he shouted, "Come on! Test me! Test me!" As he set foot onto the second floor, two gangsters popped out from their hidden alcove, SMGs at the ready. Zach mowed them down with the MAC-10, and he said, "You bastards are nothing compared to Verbergerkinnh!" Hopefully that would tell the gangsters that he was a military man, and therefore much much better than they were combined. But it seemed as if a few of the gangsters didn't get the message, as a few of them still tried to put up a fight. Zach quickly disposed of them all with either his rifle or his Ingram.

"Y'all will pay for this!" Zach continued to shout. "You will not harm my daughter!" He continued his mad dash up to the rooftop of the warehouse, striking down the occasional gangster that had still not yet fled from the apparent madman attacking them. "The only people getting out of here alive are me and my daughter! No one fucks with my family!"

Zach noticed a large clump of surviving gangster guards forming up at the foot of a staircase leading up to an office mounted below the roof of the warehouse. He inserted fresh mags into his rifle and Ingram, and then he moved out from the protection of some empty propane tanks and fired, yelling incomprehensibly at the same time. The guards went down like wheat to a scythe from his barrage of bullets, and soon there was no one left alive but him. Zach then noticed a shadowy figure moving behind some barrels of nitroglycerin, and he turned his attention there and fired off a few bursts into the barrels of explosive. A gangster rolled out of the ways of the barrels just as they went off, and soon he was easy pickings for Zach and his Type 56.

"Mr. Tyler!" Alice shouted from above. "I'm here! Save me!" At least she recognized my voice even through all the gunfire, Zach thought.

As he got nearer and nearer to the office, Zach noticed a pair of guards standing on the roof of the warehouse itself. Patches of the roof had been blown off by earlier storms, leaving behind gaps where snipers could easily pick off enemies. Zach, although surprised, was able to shoot one of the snipers in the foot, and the gangster tried to clutch his injured limb before he remembered that he was actually standing on a sloping surface, but by then his descent was inevitable, and he slid down to the ground from at least four floors up. The sound of his last cry was then cut short by a sickening crunching sound. The other sniper saw this and tried to find a better position to shoot Zach, but the wily former Army lieutenant was quicker and nailed the gangster almost immediately. This second sniper fell to the ground without a sound.

Zach finally managed to reach the office. He cut down one more gangster with a burst from his Ingram, and then he took his last grenade and rolled it into the office. The sound of the explosion was small and muted, but Zach managed to see one body fly from the explosion. He entered the office, Type 56 at the ready. He turned right, and saw the crushed body of the flying gangster, and then he turned left, and he was greeted by a very terrifying sight, especially for a parent like him.

A woman dressed all in black stood before him. In front of her she held Alice, who had a pistol pointed at her temple. Alice struggled from her captor, but because the woman's finger was just a hair above the trigger, she didn't struggle as much as Zach thought she could have. "Please! No, please!" she shouted. "Save me!" she pleaded to Zach.

"All right, mister, this is what's going to happen," the woman told Zach. "Put down your weapons, and turn around."

"That's not really much of an option, is it?" Zach retorted. "Besides, you've got my daughter. I'm not leaving here without her."

"Then it looks like we're in a standoff now," the woman leered. "You're not going to drop your guns, and I'm not going to drop my gun. We're stuck, unless one of us makes a move." The woman then put her head behind Alice's, to deny Zach the clear shot he needed to take her down. "My troops are dumb," she continued. "I'm not. So, what's your next move, Inspector Zachary Tyler? Your call."

"All right," Zach said. "You got me good. I'll tell you what. I give up. I'm surrendering. You win this round. I'm going to drop my weapons, and then I'm going to slowly turn around and walk away." As he threw his rifle and Ingram to the ground, Zach couldn't bear to look at the heartbreaking pleading look on Alice's face. "I'm sorry," he muttered.

"Good choice," the woman said. "Now slowly turn around and walk out of this warehouse."

"As you wish," Zach muttered. He slowly turned around, just like he had promised. And then, when his back was fully turned, he immediately turned around once again and ducked towards the left. The traitorous woman had fired at him as soon as he had turned his back on her, and he had timed his dodge beautifully. In his kneeling position, he took out the emergency revolver from his ankle holster and aimed at the general direction of the woman. The woman went down, the top of her head having vanished thanks to Zach's revolver. "Good riddance," he muttered.

Zach walked over to where Alice had been thrown by the woman just before she had tried to kill Zach. "Are you okay?" Zach asked her.

"I guess so," Alice replied. "Uh, thanks for saving me, I guess."

"All right, now let's get out of here before their reinforcements arrive."

"Amen to that!"

Zach picked up the weapons he had dropped before he took Alice's hand and led her out of the warehouse. The rain was still falling hard on the city when they finally got out of the warehouse, and Zach led Alice resolutely towards his Ruiner. However, just as they stepped out of the warehouse, they saw another gangster trying to come in. All three were suddenly frozen in time, and then this time, it was the gangster who managed to react first. He raised up his pistol and fired. And then things went into slow motion for Zach as he went down, feeling a burning pain somewhere on his left chest. Beside him, he saw Alice scream, and then she took the Glock in his holster and fired it at the gangster, who also went down with a big hole in his chest. As Zach fell down to the ground, he saw Alice looking down at him in shock. She blinked twice or three times, he wasn't sure, and then she shook her head, looked at him, and screamed really, really loud. Even in his dulled state of mind, though, Zach could make out the words that his daughter was shouting. "Oh, my God, Dad! Dad! Stay with me, Dad! Don't die on me! Don't do this to me! Don't leave me alone! Help! Someone help me! My dad's been shot!"

As Alice continued to call for help, Zach help darkness beginning to surround his vision. And then, after what felt like an eternity, he let the darkness claim him.

[Jeckland]

Jeckland Roster for World Baseball Classic 32
Jeckland return to the plate for this, their fourth WBC. It all began in Equestrian States where a rookie Jeckland team made the round of 20 in teir first tournament, before losing to Milchama. Then came WBC 30. In a tournament billed by many as the most unpredictable in modern history, the Spuds reached the final, eventually going down 3-1 to Super-Llamaland. They went into Classic 31 with the world #2 rank and the wieght of expectation on their shoulders, but didn't buckle, reaching the final again. However, Super-Llamaland swept them, consigning them to their second straight second place. Now back for a fourth time and on home turf, Jeckland will see anything but victory as a disappointment.

Starters
1. SS Callum North (28)
2. 2B Jamie Daniels (27)
3. LF Jay Henry (31)
4. 3B Aidan Bevan (26)
5. CF Riley Henry (29)
6. C Jake French (24)
7. RF Charles Carpenter (23)
8. 1B Sean Watts (22)
9. IF NEEDED DH Ellis Lee (27)

Backups
IF George Henderson (27)
IF Kyle Foster (23)
OF Ryan Gibbs (32)
OF Sebastian Lloyd (24)

Starters
Finlay Pollard (27)
Brandon Wallis (31)
Matthew Quinn (22)
Leo Francis (25)

RELIEF
Long: Liam Page (25)
Lefties: Michael Perkins (30)
Middle Left: Connor Williams (26)
Middle Right: William Craig (26)
Setup Left: Freddie Arnold (27)
Setup Right 1: Louie Jenkins (25)
Setup Right 2: Ben James (30)
Closer: Nicholas Barker (28)

Style Mod: 0

RP Permissions: TG me if you plan anything out of the ordinary

[Hicana]

HICAÑA ROSTER FOR WBC 32

Background: In protest of the Gregoryisgodistani and Republican conquerors of the nation, Hicañans will have two goals in the group stage - 1.) break every Gregoryisgodistani law they can think of and 2.) go against every Christian text they can find. Games will be, um, interesting. Also nobody knows how to play baseball because the baseball players all fled the country.

STARTING LINEUP

1. Attacking Halfback: Eric Ramirez, #5, 27
2. Quarterback: Neills Schumaker, #18, 31
3. Goalie: Alexei Sanchez, #1, 26
4. Wicket-Keeper: James Tyburn, #11, 25
5. Right defenseman: Adrian Ervine, #16, 22
6. Power forward: José Allendes, #25, 35
7. Dwile flonker: Tyson Blagojevich, #33, 26
8. Fifth baseman: Pablo Partín, #8, 38
9. (incomprehensible Calvinball position): Richard Rivera, #26, 18

THE PITCHER: IDK

[Imota]

ISports, Vol. 25, Issue 50 (WBC 32 Special)

Not Enough: Devonta Outpitches Sunwings, Stay Undefeated

United States of Devonta         2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0  2
Imota                            0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0  1

The United States of Devonta team, fresh off a win against Nassau-Hessen, added to their inaugural WBC campaign by beating our Sunwings in a pitching duel.

The Devontans got Sakuya Izayoi to trip up early, scoring two runs on three singles in the top of the first. Although she eventually got into the groove of things, the damage had already been done. Imota’s only run came in the bottom of the third, when Kantarou Futaki launched a solo homer to deep center. Izayoi put up an impressive line, going 7.2 innings and allowing just five hits and a walk while fanning eight. Devonta’s pitchers were only just slightly better, allowing seven hits but only one run.

The big problem tonight was the offense. When they’re hot, they can put up impressive totals and bend the ERAs of opposing pitchers beyond recognition. When they’re not, though, even solid efforts like that of Izayoi tonight get wasted. In two games, we scored eight while allowing just three runs, so we know we have the power, both on offense and defense. The key is consistently scoring and avoiding long scoreless stretches.

Imota’s next game sees them take a trip to Londonium for a road date with the Nova Anglicana Lions, our Classic 31 co-hosts, who are currently 0-2 after taking a loss against Nassau-Hessen. Nozomi Itoshiki will start against Chris Keyes in a battle of southpaws. Don’t miss it!

Group C                         Pld    W   L    RF   RA   RD   Pts 
1 Val Halla                         2    2   0    16    8   +8     2
2 United States of Devonta          2    2   0     7    3   +4     2
3 Imota                             2    1   1     8    3   +5     1
4 Nassau-Hessen                     2    1   1     9    8   +1     1
5 Nova Anglicana                    2    0   2     7   12   −5     0
6 Thibaut                           2    0   2     5   18  −13     0

[Patistan]

Group Cutoff

3rd times the charm

[Patistan]

Group F
Hicana                   0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1  1
Communist Eurasians      0 1 2 0 0 0 0 0 X  3

Crystal Empire           0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0  0
Jeckland                 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 X  1

Naval Monte              0 0 1 1 0 1 0 1 0 0 0  4
England-Ireland          1 1 0 0 0 0 1 1 0 0 1  5

                          Pld    W   L    RF   RA   RD   Pts 
1 Naval Monte               3    2   1    17   15   +2     2
2 Hicana                    3    2   1     9    7   +2     2
3 Jeckland                  3    2   1     7    6   +1     2
4 England-Ireland           3    2   1     9   10   −1     2
5 Communist Eurasians       3    1   2     8    8    0     1
6 Crystal Empire            3    0   3     9   13   −4     0

Group G
Gregoryisgodistan]       0 3 0 0 0 0 0 2 0  5
Thebear                  0 1 0 0 0 0 0 1 1  3

Cosumar                  0 0 0 0 1 1 0 0 1  3
The Fair Republic        0 0 0 0 1 1 0 0 0  2

Icrum                    0 0 2 0 0 0 0 0 0  2
Greater Weselton         0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0  1

                          Pld    W   L    RF   RA   RD   Pts 
1 Gregoryisgodistan         3    3   0    19    9  +10     3
2 Thebear                   3    2   1    14    9   +5     2
3 Cosumar                   3    2   1     7    7    0     2
4 Greater Weselton          3    1   2     8   12   −4     1
5 Icrum                     3    1   2     6   10   −4     1
6 The Fair Republic         3    0   3     6   13   −7     0

Group H
San Jose Guayabal        1 0 1 1 0 0 0 0 0  3
Arana                    0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 1  2

Estenia                  0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0  1
Equestrian States        0 1 0 0 0 4 4 0 X  9

New Matawan              7 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0  8
UNITED WE STAND123       0 0 0 0 4 0 0 0 1  5

                          Pld    W   L    RF   RA   RD   Pts 
1 New Matawan               3    3   0    23   10  +13     3
2 San Jose Guayabal         3    3   0    14    8   +6     3
3 Equestrian States         3    2   1    17    7  +10     2
4 UNITED WE STAND123        3    1   2    14   17   −3     1
5 Arana                     3    0   3     7   17  −10     0
6 Estenia                   3    0   3     5   21  −16     0

[Hicana]

Shortly before Hicaña's match against some team whose only distinguishable feature is that of communism

"Looks like we'll have an easy win," the veteran fifth baseman Pablo Partín remarked, looking over the horizon to the baseball stadium. "If we get to the stadium."

"But we won't!" exclaimed Dwile Flonker Tyson Blagojevich, who, for some reason, was obvious from miles away to the communists, whose eyesight was especially excellent, especially when spotting run-on sentences.

Everybody turned to look at Tyson. "Fools!" he said. "I am not Tyson Blagojevich, I am Rod Blagojevich, former governor of Illinois!"

"Where's that?" someone asked.

"Oh, um...doesn't matter. Anyways, I've come to take control of all of the multiverse by dwile flonkinging really well!" and then he attempted to laugh evilly. Pablo shot him and he collapsed onto the pavement in a pool of blood. The team rented a taxi and left. Without a Dwile Flonker, Hicaña was doomed for sure...

[Star United States]

World Basecall Classic 32

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☆★ Men's National Baseball Team Roster ★☆

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Home Stadium: Central Arena, City of Star, Starix, Star United States

Management Team
Head Coach: Justin Briggs
Assistant Coach: Elias Porter
Assistant Coach: Anthony Bridges
Assistant Coach: Theodore Peters
Tactics Officer: Timothy Curry
Doctor: Ray Hoffman

Rotation
#1 - Tristan Madison
#3 - Bradley Goodwin
#5 - Isaac Barker

Starting Line-Up
#2 - Samuel Allison, CF
#4 - Samuel Anderson, SS
#6 - Bruce Massey, LF
#8 - Marcus Blake, 1B
#10 - Jared Martinez, 2B
#12 - Ross Morrison, 3B
#14 - Andres Rodriquez, RF
#15 - Gustavo Oliver, DL
#16 - Nathaniel Roy, C

Bullpen
#7 - Jordan Hughes, LR
#9 - Irving Wells, LR
#11 - Rickey Reese, MR
#13 - Jeffrey Holt, MR
#15 - Terry Wheeler, SU
#17 - Jesse Marsh, CL

Bench
#18 - Dennis Meyer
#19 - Blake Casey
#20 - Marvin Garrett
#21 - Brent Price
#22 - Dexter Klein

RP Permissions
Have fun, however, if it something extreme, please telegram me beforehand.

[Super-Llamaland]

Epic Quest Three: Since it worked so well the last time
ONE

Jeck had lost it all. His tuna, vanished in time's rise and fall, Margaret, vanished in the mysterious shockwave that had leveled much of Esportiva, everything but the clothes he was wearing. Everything.

Numbly, he had walked back to his flat, picking his way through the rubble in misguided hope, but it wasn't there - it'd been destroyed with the rest of eastern Esportiva. There'd been a few of his neighbors there, all numbly walking around and wondering why they weren't dead, but for the most part everything had disappeared. Almost everyone had either been at the baseball game or in their houses.

With lack of anything else to do, he stumbled back towards the stadium, stopping at the wreckage of a convenience store to pick up a few Hypercondensed Energy Dews - mountain dew that had been boiled, leaving a neon residue at the bottom that was then mixed with shots of five-hour energy to the point where it was too caffeinated to be legally sold. Jeck took six of them, stuffing the bottles into his jacket.

There it was again - a smoking crater where the bubble had once been. Once home to Margaret's strange creation, now it had gone away in a brilliant puff of smoke. Staring at it and realized how ruined he was, Jeck downed one of the bottles in a single gulp.

"Could you give me one of those?" the voice was weary, desperate, sounded as tired as he felt. Instinctively he reached into his pocket and handed him the bright yellow bottle, then looked over. It was Llama, clothes torn and blackened by smoke, dirty and exhausted.

Together they drank Hypercondensed Energy Dew until their heads were buzzing in simulated ecstasy and there was only one bright bottle left in his jacket. Ears ringing, they looked at each other.

"What next?" Jeck asked gloomily.

"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAGETOUTOFTHEWAY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!"

"Uh, what?" Jeck blinked, opened his eyes, and saw someone running at full tilt towards him, a red piece of cloth trailing behind him. Instantly he leapt up and dove to a side, the mysterious person sprinting past him, eyes wide in panic. Following him and holding the last bottle of Energy Dew was Llama, sprinting as fast as he could. A shadow cast its way over the street in which they were standing.

Jeck stared at him, then heard a massive footstep behind him. He turned, disbelieving his eyes, and sprinted after the two.

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Juan was furious as he speed-walked - nay, ran down the corridor. Choosing a door at random, he flung it open with a mighty crash, stormed inside, shouted: "I DEMAND TO KNOW THE MEANING OF THIS!", walked out, angrily flinging his arms in great wide arcs, then continued on to the next door and so on and so forth.

There were only three rooms in the office building and as such he was bound to find the right one. Sure enough, when he flung open the third and final door, black as a black object with dark red, loopy text reading "REAPER'S OFFICE", he realized that this was (in fact!) the Reaper's Office and yelled "I DEMAND TO KNOW THE MEANING OF THIS!" particularly loudly.

"Eh...what?" a dark curl of smoke flickered slowly into a person in the corner.

"Mr. Grim Reaper! Why is Margaret the Goddess dead!"

Recognition flickered over the person - not more than a boy, Juan realized - 's features. "Oh, I'm sorry, but Mr. Reaper isn't here today. I'm his intern and he hasn't given me access to the actual death database." Here he lamely gestured to a dusty old Dell mainframe in the corner. "I've got a Google Doc up with a copy of it on, but I don't think it's recent. Margaret - that is her name, right? Probably won't be on it."

"Could you just check for me?" Juan asked impatiently.

"What's her name?"

"Fortunata."

"I thought you said it was Margaret."

"Only sometimes. Fortunata, no last name."

"Date of death?"

"Shouldn't be more than six hours ago."

"Ah, probably not on here though." The intern walked over to the computer - R QUEBEC, it read in duct tape on the front of it - and furiously hammered in a few commands. "Nope. There have been a few Fortunata None-givens on here, but probably not the one you want. None of them are goddesses, anyway."

"Well, thank you." As Juan walked out, a single tear rolled down his face.

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