World Baseball Classic 49- Everything Thread (IC)

[The Sherpa Empire]

Game 2, Super-Llamaland series at Syangboche:

As the players were doing their warm-ups, Daki Chuan found Kami Akunjee lounging around not doing much since he knew he wasn't pitching today. Talking to him was one of those things like picking at a scab -- it was disgusting, but it was hard not to sometimes. "Who was that woman you were talking to after the game yesterday?" she asked. "The one with the wheelchair."

"That's my wife," said Akunjee.

"So your wife is disabled, and you leave her home by herself while you go around chasing after other women?"

Akunjee looked uncomfortable. "You make it sound so much worse than it is."

"Un-fucking-believable!"

"I like women, okay? But Samira knows that. I don't know why you have to keep assuming the worst."

"Because you're a womanizing creep?"

Akunjee sighed. "Have you ever done those things where you visit a school or a hospital and talk to kids to brighten their day?"

"Yeah, I sometimes talk to girls to get them interested in sports," said Chuan.

"That was how I met Samira. I mean, not specifically talking to girls to get them interested in sports, but doing community outreach like that," Akunjee explained. "One day, me and Jamling Ihawa visit a school, and I start talking to this girl who's in a wheelchair because she doesn't have any hands or feet. It's a birth defect. She's a senior in high school, and we just have this wonderful conversation. She's smart, funny... I just liked her. And she thought it was cool that some hotshot who plays for the Icefall Doctors is talking to her. She says, 'I wish we could talk like this again,' so I give her my phone number. I talk to her again..."

"This isn't making you sound any less creepy," said Chuan.

"What? How is it creepy?" Akunjee spluttered.

"You don't think a grown-ass man having a relationship with a teenage girl is creepy?" Chuan said, a note of outrage creeping into her voice.

"Oh, no, it wasn't like that," said Akunjee. "At first we were just friends. It didn't turn romantic until after she finished school."

"It's still creepy," Chuan insisted. "I don't want to hear any more of this." She stalked away and left Akunjee standing there looking exasperated.

"Don't talk to me if you're not going to let me tell my side of the story!" he called after her. "And then people wonder why I don't talk about my wife..." he muttered to himself after she was out of earshot.

The game was one of the slugfests Syangboche was known for, but a relatively one-sided one. The Sherpas got a satisfying win to make up for the previous day's loss.

---

---

The Sherpas clinched a place in the playoffs with the last game of the Super-Llamaland series, but they didn't take that as an invitation to slack off through their road trip to Devonta. They were still playing to win, trying to keep the momentum going and get a good seeding. Things were relatively peaceful in the clubhouse. Chuan and Akunjee weren't talking to each other, but everyone was in good spirits knowing they were on their way to the playoffs.

In the news, in sports bars, in online forums, and around office water coolers, people were still debating whether the Sports Department had made the right call putting Daki Chuan on the roster. The fact that a sporadically-used relief pitcher got so much scrutiny was proof that a lot of the Sherpa populace were not ready for mixed-gender sports teams.

Since there was a short break between the group stage and the first playoff games, Chongba Lee had an opportunity to shuffle the starting rotation, and he debated whether he should. While other players were stirring up all manner of drama, Weiyun Gan had quietly put together an excellent record in the group stage with 40 1/3 innings pitched and a 2.67 ERA. Despite being a misogynist jerk, Ai had done almost as well. Lee considered moving one of them to the top of the rotation, but ultimately decided to stick with Zhuang pitching game 1 against Quebec. Gan would have been pitching on short rest, and Lee didn't want to feed Ai's egotistical attitude. At the bottom of the rotation, Akunjee had been erratic, but his good starts were really good. He was annoying to manage, and the team from Super-Llamaland seemed to have his number -- but against everyone else he had an impressive 1.57 ERA, and he'd been going deep into games too. Well, they weren't playing Super-Llamaland in the round of 16, so Akunjee got moved up the rotation from 5th to 4th.

Starting pitchers for the series against Quebec:
1. Luochong Zhuang
2. Wangdi Ai
3. Weiyun Gan
4. Kami Akunjee
5. Tsheri Pham

[Cassadaigua]

Team Focused On TJUN-ia,
By Chelsea Dufresne, Concord Heights Times,

The team arrived in Pocono City without showing that much excitement to be here. Look around the World Baseball Classic, and you will see countless examples of nations that are thrilled to be taking part in the playoffs here in Newmanistan. For the Fillies, the business as usual, workmanlike was very apparent immediately. Outfielder Taylor Bryant told reporters that, “We’re not here to have fun, we have baseball games to win right now.” Manager Maddie Polanco would elaborate more, “When the only ending that will be successful is a championship, these games right now are no different then the group stage. TJUN-ia is a good team. They have played the Rockets a few times and had some wins. They know what it is like to have success and have proven themselves in the sporting world.”

One thing that you did not hear the team talking about much was the disqualification of the Free Republics, and the circumstances that have surrounded that nation. You can read more about them in the World Affairs sections of this paper. Bryant did joke that, “They should surrender their 46 (World Baseball Classic) title to us then.” That has been the main thing that has got Dagan reporters analyzing, as to whether or not the Republicans cheated in that series. It was a series that was actually contested here in Newmanistan. “Perhaps the Newmanistanian media caught something for that series. I don’t think that you could ever take away someone’s title, but it would certainly taint it. There has been a lot about the Free Republics that has been tainted. While trying to best their own interests, such as winning a title, they have destroyed their reputation. All I know is that we have never had to do it.” said manager Maddie Polanco in the one comment she was willing to make on the matter. Otherwise, the team did not make any comments on the matter. The focus now is on TJUN-ia, hoping to make quick work of them and get their fans indulging on all the free alcohol that they can to drown down their disappointment after we knock them out. You don't want that to be celebratory. Ask Chris Holmes what happens then.

OOC: Had a better RP going, but lost it in a computer crash. Didn't have time to re-do everything.

[Ihilthracna]

Headline for Harman cyam post.

[The Royal Kingdom of Quebec]

Childhood, Traces
PART 9 - Little Bird

Landslide Global Headquarters, Plibury, Grearia

‘What do you mean? Why am I here in your office at ten in the morning? You never schedule the one-on-one meetings this early, Roy.’ Asher stood in front of his end of the business table, feeling very much concerned that he had to wrap up a recording session when it’s only ten in the morning. Memories- they are fickle creatures of their own breed, and he knew that interruption to the narrative would not be a good thing at all.

Yet he was still here, and there wasn’t much he could have done to get away from this awkward situation. Besides, he knew he probably committed something badly enough to be caught.

‘I know it’s nothing big, if you don’t make it big.’ Roy Zimmerman, the Editor-in-Chief, looked at him, while the sun shone brightly outside their office tower. There was no sense of certainty in the air. Both Asher and Roy knew that all’s gonna end very well or the junior of the two’s going to be fired by the end of the day. Of course, the headquarters wasn’t big to start with - there were only about sixty staff members working there - and everybody knew words can be very potent as weapons as well. ‘That’s what we have to agree upon, right?’

‘Yes. You have to explain to me though. There must have been some sort of misunderstanding,’ Responded Asher, in an attempt to get around the increasing headache that this was becoming. The 23-year old always had a nose to find ideas out of the blue. The fact that he’s not afraid to experiment or risk flying into those zones, that’s one thing that quickly got the approval of his supervisors at its branch office that’s just as well known internationally in Landslide Quebec, where he interned for all three summers of undergrad days.

Even after a year of increasing recognition by those of the sporting and musical communities, he was still largely unfamiliar with many of his colleagues at Landslide International. They were generally older, Esportivan, and had been through enough situations in life and world that all he had for their struggles were respect- a particular note given all the regional conflicts that occurred in the 2020s and 2030s. It was an unfortunate aspect of being always around the clock as a two-job journalist. Time management was particularly important in his professional situation- and this had sometimes meant that you’d be able to have a full day or two off, but be working for days straight. For Asher, however, that wasn’t so much an issue, as it was more on him flying abroad all the time with his arms out like a pair of Aerobus A-380 wings, between Concord Heights, Quebec City, and Salvador (where the nearest flight from Quebec City land).

‘Well, I don’t think you’re telling me what exactly happened.’ Zimmerman stared at him with a particular sharpness to his edge, feeling unsatisfied with Asher’s response. ‘I accidentally ended up seeing an L’Instagramme story of one of our colleagues, and it had some morally...questionable content.’ It was pretty clear from the onset that he knew it was somewhat uncomfortable for the Guayabalense-Grearian to discuss, and he attempted to control it with a curveball or two. Still, it was pretty clear to Asher on what he was talking about. That at least he wasn’t denying. ‘It’s quite impressive that you were able to still leave the bacchanalia in time and fly your way back to Plibury, just in time for your morning flight. Amazing even.’

‘Mmm-mmm-mhm.’ was all that came out of Asher’s mouth, as he tried his best to come up with a good excuse. A weekend getaway to nearby Porto Nowi for the final matchday of the season, which of course came with ‘additional perks’. Months of planning ahead, weeks of finding the right blue paint that would not affect his reproductive organs upon contact, and not to mention days of finding a right bodysuit to wear in time for getting back to the Porto Nowi Airport for a 6:30 a.m. flight. He scratched his head for a couple of seconds and tried to gather correct words on how to explain it all - amusing enough to find a passable explanation, but also painful enough to come up with the right words. How was he going to find a way out of explaining this weird situation with a Zeta Rekan ultra’s executive core that happens to have offered him a chance to join their executive-only smurf orgy? That he was unsure to explain how.

---

‘С добрым утром. Просыпайся!’’
‘Morning, Quebec Smurf.’
‘Fuck, turn off the lights...it’s four in the morning!’
‘Mph, Mph. Mph….’
‘Dobro jutro, Aschere. Why the fuck you up right now?’
‘Have a flight to catch back to Grearia. Now, if you can excuse me….can you please pass me my pants?’
‘Yes, papa smurf, yes. YES!’
'There, there. Why can't you calm down a bit? Gargamel's already exhausted because he has low endurance, and a bunch of other smurfs seem to have moved onto other rooms.'
'Hopefully not the washroom, bruh.'
'Not my problem,
‘Mph. Mmmm. Ph. Mmmm…..MPH!’
*moans*
‘....well that’s at least a good sight to watch. One pair doing it on the bed, while there are a couple of them, still with some blue paint on, on some sofas.‘
‘Sure thang it is a fun sight. Anyways, when’s your flight, Quebec Smurf?’
‘The Spiritair flight to Salvador’s in…..3 hours. That’s why I do need to go.’
‘Mph. Ugh….let’s go. Mph.’
‘Yes, yes, yes, yes…’
‘You know how to get to the Porto Nowi Airport right?’
‘Yes I did, Clumsy Smurf. I'm not like you.'
'Good. Anyways, Grouchy Smurf here....hope you clean yourself from the blue and pack your stuff before you fly. Heard that those customs officers aren't so nice these days.
‘Mph. Mph. Mphhhh….mph,.....’
‘Yes. I did, Grouchy Smurf. I’ll probably have to get changed to the jumpsuit though, in case the blue paint may not be scraped off all of my body.’
‘Okay. So, mph, it’s, mph, very…...mph, very straightforward. Just catch the cab to the airport, mph, it should, mph, take you, mph, about twenty minutes.’
'Perfect. Many thanks.'
'No worries, mph. Mph.'
'Such a shame all went like that, and on the day we had our distinguished guest here, in Quebec Smurf. A meagre 1-1 draw against Stanmir and there it went. Our title hopes went away like those 2 points we should have captured.'
'Eh, it's okay. Things can always get worse. Like that Waluigi we brought here last time around....he didn't do so well when I brought him.'
'So you were there that night in Delaclava, Quebec Smurf. The hot night of passions in Manchester, after a Delaclav win over the Naked Princesses.'
'Of course I was there! One of 340-something lucky people, that's me.'
‘YES! **** me like Paznyak to them degenerates!’
'fUcK mE pApA sMuRf.....'
‘Here we goin’, smurfette. Here we goin!!!!’
‘Oh what the heck! Anyways, bro, good game today. Tough luck we didn’t get to win it all this time, but maybe better luck next year. Perhaps Stanmir might properly challenge us this time though.’
‘God I hope it’ll get even more exciting than that. You’ll read a solid article about it on Landslide International soon, assuming it passes.’
'oh....OH....'
'OOOOOOHHH....'
'OHHHHHH.........OHHHHH....'
'YYYYYYYYYYYYYEAAAH.....'
*lots of moans*
'Well, at least that was a sight.'
'Good job today, Papa Smurf....loved it.'
'Oh yes...yes....my dear Smurfette...'
‘Oh, sure thing! We’ll be all reading it in 2 weeks’ time, that’s for sure. Anyways, Quebec Smurf, I have a bigger question for you.’
‘Yehhhh…...s, Grouchy Smurf?’
‘How are you still standing and able to get to the airport for six a.m. flight after all that fun?’

---

‘So you did find out about it.’ Asher responded, somewhat impressed his supervisor had just enough space on the corner of his eye to look at Asher’s coworker’s social media stories. ‘I’m quite impressed you weren’t so surprised about it.’

‘I don’t think anybody got surprised over it.’ Roy explained with simplicity. ‘As great as the Porto Nowi derby is, and how it seems to drive up a libido of every man, it’s now clear that the whole smurf orgy was what may have brought you to report the final matchweek of FLF ZRiH Divizija 1.’ Roy Zimmerman had once been part of the circuit many moons ago, when he was an undergraduate student from then-Guayabalense San Salvador. Zimmerman was a young international student at Seonggyoongwan University College, the Universite St. Croix’s equivalent of the Faculty of Arts and Sciences, and he clearly took part in those underground circles that was a symptom of institutional and cultural degeneracy that had come to define the Quebecois culture abroad. Since then, his life had evolved well enough that he was in a good stage to get away with it, but still be aware when to say otherwise to debaucheries. Zimmerman, the Editor-In-Chief of Landslide International the past twelve years, was now one of the most prolific figures of sports and music journalism in the Sporting Multiverse- all the years he spent building it up in both Quebec and ex-San Jose Guayabal/now-Grearia were worth the pain and drain. He was funky, genuine and bald, with a lavender dress shirt and circular glasses.

In the meanwhile, Asher was still up-and-coming star in Quebecois journalism, who may have achieved a ton in a post-graduation year of employment with both Concord Heights Times and Landslide International, but he knew he still had a long way to go.
The two looked at each other, and then briefly looked at the sunny view of Downtown Plibury that they used as the base camp. Perhaps being blatant is better than saying no to this, Asher thought. ‘Yeah, I guess you’re right on that.’ Asher sighed, nodding a couple of times. ‘But I guess it’s not the be all, end all? Experiencing the fan culture out there in Zeta Reka and Hügeltaldom was certainly worth it, especially since we expect a couple of Quebecois players to head there down the road anyway….especially for Stanmir.’

Fortunately, Asher saw a clear nod coming from his supervisor. ‘That’s also a valid point.’ He agreed. ‘You see. You’ve done some phenomenal work for us already, and you know that you are the youngest staff member ever to reach the middle-level employee. So we cannot fire you.’

‘That’s at least good. Hopefully there’s something else I can do to partly make it up, as long as the news about the smurf orgy don’t spread.’ Asher flung his air around in glee.

‘Then you have to finish something for me.’ Roy looked at him, as he slowed down to explain a complicated concept, in the odd, Hispanic variation of Royal Standard that Asher assumed had come down to years of living in Grearia. ‘So just two days ago, while you were still in Porto Nowi, I managed to receive a very good news that Landslide International have just won the honour to be the only media outlet that will have an ex-clu-sive, 2-hour long interview with Plongeon.’ He smiled, giving a particular moment of heightened confidence that came with even more responsibility. ‘But they did have a condition, that you, Asher Chania Lundrigan, be the interviewer for this occasion.’

‘But, why me?’ Asher asked in confusion, uncomfortably trying to hide something he wasn’t really ready to discuss at this point in time. Even after all the months of working with his supervisor, and earning his favour through diligent work and of course, the resemblance of a fuckboi way of life he had long come to enjoy, there were some things he simply wasn’t ready to discuss. ‘Don’t we have Kostya (Kulikov) or Kiannah (Kibanga-Saladino) for this purpose? I'm sure they are probably in better shape to write music articles....It's just not my vibesz right now to write music and pop culture articles! Those are best in the fall!’

‘I don’t know, but it was HER idea to be interviewed by you.’ Roy shrugged. ‘Not a bad thing though. You’re that one major star weeee have around her age group, and one who also needs to breathe the air a bit more and start heading bit more into wooded walks, while burning less rubber every other day of your life. She’s a lovely person, believe me, and I know that you won’t screw it up.’
‘But...but….’ Asher sighed, trying to put together his words as he asked. ‘What about my interview piece on Luochong Zhuang, as I previously promised to you?’

‘Oh that?’ Roy raised his eyebrows, as clicked the clicker to show the article draft he received five days ago. ‘Is perfect. Just what we need.’ And then they slowly went through the article:

Luochong Zhuang : Landslide International Interview
The First in-depth international interview, spanning 2 hours, with the Sherpa Superstar



BY ASHER C. LUNDRIGAN

Although one of the best baseball pitchers on the international stage, Luochong Zhuang is also one of the most unique sportspeople of our times. Since taking the world on storm over the past decade in both his career with Guangzhou and the Sherpa Empire National baseball team, all the world’s eyes and attention have fallen on Zhuang who, in spite of all the challenges, keeps himself focused and curious about the world around him.

This interview and the photographs- probably the finest of Zhuang in the past five seasons- were completed last April at Zhuang’s apartment in Guangzhou. The interview was conducted by Asher C. Lundrigan. Although this isn’t the most thorough set of questions and answers, this interview is still the most extensive of all those conducted so far about the tall, lanky right-handed pitcher to the international media. Of course, the rest and more will be filled in over time, as we grow older and watch him complete a full cycle in his career, but in the meantime, it is our absolute pleasure to offer this interview as a window to understand Zhuang, the true geek of our times.

Q : So, the first thing we'd like to talk about are your favourite topics of discussion like 'sustainable agriculture', 'mating patterns of fruit flies,' and of course, how you came to get interested in it...
A : How I got interested in it is a long story. Growing up, I was living in suburbs just outside Hangzhou, where I first debuted in the pros. Living in a place where there were just about enough green space. I always wanted to get out and pitch while still young, because it's fun and all that. Almost as if in a state where we are in Gyatso-Kai with their sky bisons and how much they eat...

Q : Absolutely. It's something very fascinating that many of us hold to our romanticised notion of past, but also to the promising prospects our futures hold specifically when it comes to sustainable agriculture and how to accept the environmental influences.
A : Right. The suburbs, and how slowly everything goes, even with the grasshoppers there, kinda have us give an underappreciation for our terrains, but as we travel more and look into the other ways of looking into life, it's something we all, as creatures unified under the one sun above and the soil underneath, have to understand.

Q : Absolutely. I do wonder what made you start playing baseball from an early age, and how you ended up playing pitcher?
A : Well, I mean, we were kids, you know, just kids. We were all kids looking for something fun to play. More often than not it’d be something involving screens per se, but just as much effort were given for those without screens as well. Sometimes we all forget too often about those outside and out there, because of how contained we can get on our urban settings. And that's where the environmental influences came into play from early on- the culture encouraged us to go for something bigger, the better and ultimately, to try bolder things.

Q : So that's how you fell in love with baseball.
A : Exactly. It's like Cassadagan ecology, and how the environmental influences there may have played a role in the matriarchal culture and whatnot. We were in local parks with a baseball diamond, and during after schools, we’d go there. Sometimes we’d bring homework there, so we could tell our parents we didn’t just spend several hours there for nothin’, but other times it’d come before or after. We were very lucky our local park happened to have night lights set up long before we started playing at young age...so sometimes it would go on, and on.
Q : Oh, absolutely. Interestingly enough, you did say that your favourite subject back in high school was science, especially biology. What made you get into it from such an early age?
A : There is something fascinating about how everybody and everything moves...so organically, and yet so meticulously and mechanically that cannot be explained in equations or words. We need something deeper and more fundamental to understand, and that’s what got me into it first. As it got tougher, it naturally became a greater interest of mine, and has remained as such....

‘But this will have to wait,’ he continued. ‘because of your behaviour, and also because having this week’s cover as that of Salvador Open which, given the location, makes more sense to do so. It will be on the cover for the next one though. That I can promise. Not to mention the Porto Nowi derby article still being there. Practical experience helps right there.’

‘Bloody hell,’ Asher sighed, before saying the old lyrics he had heard on radio before. 'Girlfriend, oh your girlfriend's drifting away. Past and present, 1855-1901...'

‘It’ll all be fine,’ Roy approached and patted Asher on head, as a gesture of compromise, before winking at him. ‘Just don’t screw it up. Heard that she’s even bigger of a name in the Quebecois Commonwealth than the Mainland. Cannot ignore that.’

[Super-Llamaland]

Credits go to 538 for the RP idea and below website design.

How TenNinetyThree Generates Its WBC49 Predictions

Justin Liang, Emily Jansen, Michael Cabrera, TenNinetyThree.com

For the past three WBCs, our sports analytics site, TenNinetyThree, has been hard at work trying to use the latest breakthroughs in sabermetrics and data analytics to predict the outcomes of the World Baseball Classic. The WBC is intrinsically a very high-variance tournament, where unlikely champions win frequently and nobody is truly a favorite until the finals. However, our Elo rating system has generally been successful at rating teams, and combined with information about travel schedules, home field advantage, and rest dates, we believe that this year's model should be better than ever.

Elo Ratings

Originally popularized in competitive chess, Elo Ratings provide a convenient way of rating WBC competitors that can constantly update itself with new data. After every game is played in the WBC, the Elo Ratings of each team will be adjusted, with the winner gaining points and the loser losing points. The amount of points won/lost will depend on how large of an upset the result was, as well as the margin of victory. For instance, if Cassadaigua were to defeat TJUN-ia 3-2 in game one of their Round of 16 series, they would gain a small amount of points, while if TJUN-ia won 33-0, they would gain significantly more points.

Our current Elo Rating system has trawled all international baseball results since the beginning of international baseball. While success in friendly matches and smaller tournaments, like the International Baseball Slam, is still considered (likely why IBS 11 champions Tikariot are the fourteenth-most likely WBC49 champion, rather than the sixteenth), the most weight is given to the WBC, especially recent WBC results. As such, this allows us to rate all remaining WBC participants.

Rating Adjustments

However, the pure strength of a team - as decided by Elo - is not the only factor that goes into these predictions. We also make adjustments based on travel time, group stage performance, injuries, and starting pitchers.

Home-field advantage has a much greater impact on the group stage projections than the Ro16 projections, as it impacts more teams there. Here, only Newmanistan - the WBC49 hosts - are given a bonus for hosting the WBC. Additionally, high travel times between games mean more tired teams - and teams that have to travel far to get from their Ro16 series to their QF series will be penalized. The amount of rest days a team has are also considered - both for the team itself, which will be more tired after playing longer series, and for any starting pitchers we project to pitch on short rest.

Group stage performance is already factored into the Elo Rating, but we've chosen to especially weight group stage results due to their relevance to WBC49. Run differential has a higher weight than just wins and losses, due to the divergences between true skill and record in a 30-game group stage. The average Elo of each group is also heavily considered, resulting in boosts to Group 7's Ko-oren, Royal Kingdom of Quebec, and Tikariot, while those from less difficult groups are punished.

Injuries and playing time also play an important role. Our projected depth charts, combined with predictive data based on the injury luck of each nation in the past, account for this, and especially injury-prone teams (like Super-Llamaland) are penalized accordingly. Once a player is injured, they will be removed from the depth chart (unless, of course, they're WBC41 Courtney Duvall). Finally, the starting pitcher has a big impact on the game, and depending on the starting pitcher's past group stage performance, each pitcher is assigned a rating that factors into the final team rating for each game.

Making Predictions

We ran 100,000 simulations of the WBC in order to generate the probabilities currently displayed on our website. In order to predict the outcome of a game, the two teams' Elo ratings are compared to the Elo ratings of teams in past WBC games to determine the probability that each team will win an individual game. Since teams facing elimination are generally more desperate to win their next game, this rating is adjusted slightly over the course of a series.

Results

Our model aligns with the conventional wisdom that top seeds Nova Anglicana, Cassadaigua, and Newmanistan are most likely to win the WBC. However, due to the higher-variance nature of the WBC, their probabilities of winning the WBC are comparatively low compared to favorites in other sporting events. Six teams - the aforementioned top seeds, as well as The Sherpa Empire, Banija, and Ko-oren - have more than 5% chance of winning the WBC, while even 16th seed TJUN-ia took home the WBC trophy 297 times in our simulations.

[Hapilopper]

The Hapiloppian clubhouse, McAllister Stadium, Putnam Lake, Newmanistan
Leading up to the first round of the World Baseball Classic 49 Playoffs: Hapilopper v. South Newlandia
The mood in the Hapiloppian clubhouse leading up to the quarterfinals of the World Baseball Classic was something special. For the first time in a few years, the Haps had qualified for the knockout round of the WBC, and they were going to work like hell to go far in the playoffs. Their first obstacle, South Newlandia, was a tough team from Esportiva who had really broken out this WBC, stunningly coming out on top in Group 3, beating Hampton Island 63 points to 60.

The Haps knew that South Newlandia would be a tall order for them, and Hap players were asked about them, they were lavish in their praise of their quarterfinal rivals.

“If you’ve seen the Elephant pitching squad, you’ll see that there’s some real aces that are going to be hard to hit,” said Leroy Hunnisett. “If we can put some runs on the board, it won’t be because of them, it will be despite them. But we’ll do what we can. We’ll have to be unconventional at the plate and try to get them with something they’re not expecting.”

“We just can’t go in there with any expectations whatsoever,” said Jerome Hayden. “Nor can we go in there with the belief we can just clean house. The South Newlandia Elephants are a team that can and will take us down if we go out there with less than our best. Period. So we’ve got to practice that much harder, work that much harder and scrap that much more.”

Jerome wasn’t just saying it. His girlfriend, actress Shannon Williams, posted on twii.tur a picture of Jerome taking batting practice by himself in the basement of his Washington home at 2:30 in the morning the night after returning from Equestria at the end of the group stage. There might have been a small sliver of annoyance to her post, but the truth of the matter was that Jerome was taking South Newlandia very, very seriously.

And that scene was being repeated across Hapilopper as the players took to local ballfields, basement batting cages and homemade pitcher’s mounds during the period of time between the end of the group stage and the start of the quarterfinals. Anything else going on in the multiverse and in the sporting world was just background noise at this point, something that wasn’t their concern. They’d give it a look when they were either out of the playoffs or they had hoisted the World Baseball Classic trophy.

They weren’t paying attention to whatever had happened in the Free Republics and how the FFR’s team had been disqualified for sign-stealing. In fact, when reporters asked Hap players for their comments on the Free Republics disqualification, players, by and large, didn’t really offer much comment on it.

“Who gives a shit about the Free Fucking Republics?” said pitcher Vic Foster, himself under a tiny bit of controversy for his openly doctored pitches, a practice legal in Hapiloppian baseball. “They’re out. If we had gotten them in the quarterfinal, we would have whipped their ass. Now, South Newlandia, on the other hand, that’s who we’re thinking about. Our goal is to figure out how to keep them from getting on the board. If we can do that, we’ll be golden.”

As the players arrived in the clubhouse in Newmanistan, manager Dale Moss was waiting for them. Dale had a huge smile on his face as he stood in front of several bags.

Hapilopper's Playoff Special for World Baseball Classic 49.

“Gentlemen, take these bags,” Dale said. “These are your uniforms for the playoffs.”

The players grabbed the uniforms. Now it was real. Since the 1970s, Hapiloppian sports teams had worn a different, more flashy, more colorful uniform to celebrate their presence in a championship playoff. It started with the West Hampton Royals in 1974. Since then, every Hapiloppian team making a playoff, either in the domestic leagues, or in international series, have shown up a little flashier, a little brighter, and a little wilder. The Hapilopper National Baseball Team would be no exception in the 49th World Baseball Classic.

And back home, the Playoff Special uniform had started selling like hotcakes. Hapiloppian fans rushed to nearby stores to pick up their own uniform, complete with the name and number of their favorite ballplayer. The interest back in Hapilopper was astounding, especially when you consider the low expectations that Hapiloppians had going into the World Baseball Classic for a variety of reasons.

At the start of the WBC, it seemed like the Hapiloppian public had soured on international sport. The poor performance from the Hapiloppian football team in the qualifying rounds of World Cup 85 had left a sour taste in the mouths of many Hapiloppians, and at the start of the WBC, there were rumors flying everywhere concerning the football team. Would they be disbanded? Was there an investigation going on? And what about the Hapilopper City Herald’s national team beat reporter holding late-night meetings in a Capital Stadium parking deck with someone handing him several files full of documents?

On the other hand, the baseball team decided to ignore all of that going on. They put their head down, took the field and kicked ass. Whatever was going on with the national football team was not their business and did not matter to them. They were here to win baseball games.

PITCHING ROTATION, QUARTERFINALS:
Game 1: #31 – Skinner
Game 2: #32 – Gibbs
Game 3: #33 – Foster
Game 4: #36 – M. Meadows (If Necessary)
Game 5: #34 – Winthrop (If Necessary)

BATTING ORDER, QUARTERFINAL AWAY GAMES:
1: #2 – Braxton (Second Baseman)
2: #1 – Berry (First Baseman)
3: #5 – Rowe (Left Field)
4: #4 – Hayden (Shortstop)
5: #38 – Armstrong (Designated Hitter)
6: #3 – Hunnisett (Third Baseman)
7: #8 – Beverly (Catcher)
8: #7 – Pound (Right Field)
9: #6 – Blanchard (Center Field)

BATTING ORDER, QUARTERFINAL HOME GAMES:
1: #2 – Braxton (Second Baseman)
2: #1 – Berry (First Baseman)
3: #5 – Rowe (Left Field)
4: #4 – Hayden (Shortstop)
5: #3 – Hunnisett (Third Baseman)
6: #8 – Beverly (Catcher)
7: #7 – Pound (Right Field)
8: #6 - Blanchard (Center Field)
9: Pitcher

[Nova Anglicana]

Lions advance to playoffs, to square off against Tikariot

Samantha Maxwell, Londinium Courier

The Nova Anglicana Lions have made it to the playoffs of the 49th World Baseball Classic, clinching first place in their group. They earned the #2 seed in the Round of 16 and will face Tikariot, the third seed from Group 2 and #15 seed overall. Let's take a look at how each team got here. First, the Lions.

Nova Anglicana Lions Road to the Playoffs

Series 1: This first matchup, against Ihilthracna, was a strong series for the Lions. They won all three games, including rallying from 3-0 down to win 5-3 in the final game of the series. Record: 3-0

Series 2: For their first away series, the Lions lost their first game, as Erik Russell gave up six runs in less than four innings. They did bounce back to shut out the ponies 3-0 and then take the last game in extras, 4-3. Record: 5-1

Series 3: Coming home against their greatest group-stage foe, the Hapilopper Thrashers, the Lions played one for the ages in game one. It took 17 innings to declare the Lions 5-3 winners, and they followed that up with a four-run second in game two to take the game and the series. Hapilopper would win the final game, but the Lions had held their grip on first place. Record: 7-2

Series 4: Their next series was against Jeckland, an old foe that had once knocked them out of the WBC when the Lions were the #1 seed. Jeckland showed they still had some mettle by winning 6-3 in 11 innings in game one, but the Lions used a late rally and an early knockout punch to win games two and three by the respective scores of 6-3 and 7-2. Record: 9-3

Series 5: To wrap up the first half, the Lions faced the ancient, but recently returning, nation of Zwangzug. The Zebras put up a fight in all three games, but were unable to win any of them. The Lions scored an eighth-inning run to win the first game, 4-3, then took game two 8-6 in 12 innings after the Zebras scored five in the ninth to send it to extras. They finished the series by rallying from 3-0 down in the eighth to win 4-3 and top their group after 15 games. Record: 12-3

Series 6: Heading to Ihilthracna, the players didn't know what to expect. Would they sweep again? Would the Ohorslens put up more of a fight? The Lions again rallied, down 3-1, to win the first game 4-3. Game two saw them drop their first game to Ihilthracna, 3-2, but they won 9-6 in game three to take the series. Record: 14-4

Series 7: Back at home against Equestrian States, the Lions swept their foes by an aggregate score of 22-7. They threw an early knockout punch in an 8-5 game one win, poured it on late in an 8-1 game two win, and got a dominant pitching performance from Cody Sharpe to win game three 6-1. Record: 17-4

Series 8: The rematch against Hapilopper, with the Lions holding on to a three-game lead, kicked off in Hapilopper with an 11-inning game. Fortunately, the Lions got a three-run homer from Jerome Duplantier to win the game 4-2. Good pitching combined with middle-inning scoring gave the Lions a 6-2 win in game two, and even blowing a late lead to lose 6-5 in 10 innings couldn't dampen their spirits. A four-game lead with six to play essentially meant they had clinched first place. Record: 19-5

Series 9: Jeckland came to visit next, in a series that was more about getting a better record and a better seed for the playoffs than qualifying for the playoffs or even for first place. The Lions' bullpen collapsed in game one, allowing six runs in the top of 10th to lose 11-6, but six late runs of their own in game two delivered a 6-5 win. The rubber match saw the Lions go down 6-3 after three innings, but they rallied to win 7-6 and take the series. Record: 21-6

Series 10: In the final series against Zwangzug, there was still some suspense about who would win the #1 overall seed. Would it be Cassadaigua, Newmanistan, or the Lions? After Newmanistan won their first game, 10-6, and Cassadaigua beat Ethane, 9-6, it seemed like the Lions were out of the running, losing 1-0 to Zwangzug. They were headed for the #3 seed. But Chromatika took the final two games from Newmanistan, and the Lions won 5-1 and 8-5, so they ended up with the #2 seed and the Rockets with the #3. Cassadaigua won both of their games to finish 24-6 and seal the #1 spot. Record: 24-6

Tikariot Road to the Playoffs

Series 1: Tikariot started their WBC campaign with a 2-1 series victory over The Mathuvan Union. They won game one 5-1, before winning, and then losing, a 2-1 squeaker in games two and three. Record: 2-1

Series 2: The Royal Kingdom of Quebec was their next foe, and the Thunderforge found out what it's like to face ranked WBC competition. After six runs in the first two innings gave them a 6-2 game one win, Quebec blanked them 9-0 (scoring seven runs in the seventh, take that, Drawkland!) in game two and blasted them 13-7 in game three. Record: 3-3

Series 3: Tikariot drew The Sarian next, and game one saw a 7-4 loss for the "Devil's Rejects". The Sarian scored five in the first and held on for the win. Game two saw them rally from a 3-0 deficit to win 7-3, and they pitched very well in game three, winning 2-1. Record: 5-4

Series 4: 5th-ranked Ko-oren, the top seed in the group, were their next opponents. But Tikariot pulled out a surprising 2-1 series win. After a late rally fizzled out and they lost game one 6-5, they again used excellent pitching to win games two and three by a score of 2-1, with the game two win coming in extra innings. Record: 7-5

Series 5:Tikariot finished up the first half with a wild series against fellow unranked team Falisiand. In game one, they fell behind 4-0, rallied to go up 5-4, lost the lead, took it back, lost it again, and finally walked off 7-6 winners in the bottom of the ninth. In game two, they allowed Falisiand to chip away at their early lead, eventually tying the score at five, but they came through in the bottom of the eighth to claim a 6-5 win. In game three, it was Falisiand's turn to win 6-5, taking an early 4-1 lead, losing it, and then rallying to win by the final margin. Tikariot would finish the first half with a winning record. Record: 9-6

Series 6: In the rematch against the Mathuvan Union, the Thunderforge were shut out 3-0 in game one. But they again got good pitching to win 2-1 in game two, and they put five early runs up on the board to win game three 5-3. They had some momentum and their 11-7 record was just two games out of first. Record: 11-7

Series 7: They entered series #7 one game behind Quebec for second place, making this an important series. The Grim Reapers shut them out 2-0 in game one before the "Devil's Rejects" scored three in the second inning of game two and held on to win 3-2. In the rubber match of the series, Quebec took a 3-1 lead into the sixth, but lost it to a four-run inning by Tikariot. That provided enough room for an eventual 6-3 win by the visitors, and the two teams were now tied for second. Record: 13-8

Series 8: In series eight, they made their big move. Facing off against The Sarian, Thunderforge pitchers pitched two consecutive shutouts, 4-0 and 1-0, before finally allowing a run in game three. It didn't matter, as they still won 2-1, earned the sweep, and a share of first place, tied with Ko-oren going into a matchup with them. Record: 16-8

Series 9: The ninth series was a rematch with Ko-oren, and one that would determine first place in the group. In game one, the stellar pitching in the series against The Sarian was nowhere to be found, as Ko-oren scored five runs in five innings and eight for the game in an 8-3 win. In game two, the Thunderforge took what they thought was a secure lead, 4-0 after two innings, but the Dragonflies scored seven across the fourth and fifth innings to take the lead and eventual victory, 8-6. Then, in game three, Ko-oren clinched the sweep and first place by winning 4-2. Things were looking grim for Tikariot. Record: 16-11

Series 10: In the final series, they could not win first place, and trailed Quebec by one game. These three games against Falisiand would be key. Tikariot lost their first game against Falisiand, 3-2, but the Mathuvan Union beat Quebec 5-1, so there was still hope. They just needed to win both games and hope Quebec lost at least one. Scoring eight runs in the third, they whacked Falisiand 13-6 in game two, but Quebec scored six in the seventh to win their own game, 10-3. Still trailing by a game, they needed a win and a Quebec loss. They got the win, 7-6, courtesy of a five-run seventh, but Quebec polished off the Mathuvans 4-1, seemingly dashing their hopes. But, the Free Republics team were ultimately unable to participate in the playoffs, and Tikariot, as the best third-place team, got the playoff spot. Record: 18-12

Preview

So why is Tikariot called "The Devil's Rejects?" Well, it goes back to International Baseball Slam XI, the recently revived mid-cycle baseball tournament. The citizens of Tikariot's first love is football, so baseball got short shrift. When the national baseball team went to the Slam, some folks thought they wouldn't be very good at all, and nicknamed them "The Devil's Rejects". However, the Thunderforge showed their country and the baseball world by winning the IBS, three games to one over Terre Septentrionale. So the baseball team has adopted the nickname as a way of binding their team together in the face of adversity.

What can we expect in the series? Well, Tikariot's defense only allowed 114 runs in their group stage campaign, or 3.8 runs/game. That's a strong defense, and as we saw above, the pitching saw them through several games and series. Their rotation of Stevens, Lundgren, Pettersson, Yarbrough, and Carfield is quite solid and talented. However, they only scored 117 runs, or 3.9/game. They obviously prefer a lower-scoring game where every out is valuable. The Lions bested them in both categories, averaging just over 5 runs per game, and allowing just 3.6 per game. Sluggers like Joey Keller, Jake Bryan, and Jerome Duplantier will be waiting to crush homers, and power (or lack thereof) might be the difference in a low-scoring series. As for momentum, the Thunderforge had a consistent 9-6 record in both halves, while the Lions finished 11-4 in the second half as compared to 12-3 in the first half, so neither team is on a huge hot streak. One factor might be playoff experience. The Lions are competing in their 23rd WBC and have been to the quarterfinals or greater 15 times alone, looking to make it 16 this time. Meanwhile, despite the fact the Thunderforge are no doubt riding high on their surprise playoff qualification, it will be their first time. Can they stand the pressure of a top-five squad in the playoffs of a WBC?

Although this should be a closely contested series, I think the Lions will ultimately prevail without too much trouble, three games to one.

Manager Mark Singleton has chosen to announce his starters for the first two games, but no more. Cory Sharpe and Wyatt Templeton will start games one and two. Also, the traditional lineup without DH will be used in game one against De'Andre Stevens, and the DH against RHP lineup will be used in game two against presumed game two starter Patrick Lundgren, since Tikariot uses the DH at home.

2B Tommy Moran
SS Luke Mills
LF Joey Keller
1B Jake Bryan
CF Matthew Gilbert
RF Jerome Duplantier
3B Marc Dufors
C Trevor Goodwin
P Pitcher's Spot

2B Tommy Moran
SS Luke Mills
LF Joey Keller/Davidson
1B Jake Bryan/Austin
CF Matthew Gilbert
DH Cliff Garner
RF Jerome Duplantier
3B Marc Dufors
C Trevor Goodwin

[South Newlandia]

ELEPHANT VALLEY MAIL
Sports -> Baseball
South Newlandia on their way to Newmanistan, to face Hapilopper

The Elephants managed to grab first place in their group thanks to winning two games in Dolphin Stadium of Newport against the Greater Nordics in their last group series. Both of these wins included fantastic comebacks, too. They have received seed six, and are going to play the Thrashers in the Round of 16.

The Greater Nordics                   0 0 1 1 0 0 2 0 1  5
South Newlandia                       0 0 0 1 0 1 0 0 0  2

The Elephants started out with a defeat again, something they shouldn’t keep doing. Larry Cain was on the mount first, and after he gave up a run in each of the third and fourth inning, South Newlandia was behind 0-2 early. A run by Adam King in the fourth brought them a bit closer again, and they equalized in the sixth with David Drum scoring. Then, Marcel Adams came in, and he choked the game away, giving up three runs in three innings to conclude a bitter defeat for the team, after they failed to score any additional runs.

The Greater Nordics                   2 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 2  5
South Newlandia                       0 0 0 1 1 0 0 0 4  6

Game two started like the last one. Blake Robbins gave up two in the first, sending the Elephants behind again. After seven innings, the South Newlandian team was down 2-3, as only Mike Larsen and Daryl Dunlop got any runs at all. Barnaby Butt came in for the last three innings. The seventh and eighth remained scoreless, and Butt gave up a homer to Josefine Kron, sending the Elephants behind by 2-5 with only three outs to go. Gregor Garner was first at bat, and he was retired easily. Igor White managed to get a walk, and Daryl Dunlop got himself a double. Ian Pearce managed to score a single, putting runners on the corners and scoring the first run. Unfortunately for South Newlandia, Pearce was caught trying to steal second, and South Newlandia was back to only one runner on third and two outs, still two runs down. Mike Larsen swung, and his home run made the game tied, securing extra innings at least. There was still one out left to try to win outright, and a double by Fabio Ventura put the South Newlandians into a good position. Consecutive singles by David Drum and Adam King let him score a fourth run of the inning, somehow, to win the game for the Elephants.

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

The last game, with Jay Kramer on the mount, started like the first two. Kramer gave up two runs in the fifth, and the team was behind 0-2 yet again. One run by Mike Larsen brought them a little bit closer, but they remained behind. Fabio Paul came in for the eighth and ninth inning, and the eighth saw the Elephants turning the game around. Two runs, scored by David Drum and Adam King, gained the team the third game to win the series. Paul managed to collect three outs in the ninth, and the game was over.

All matches

South Newlandia 2-1 The Greater Nordics (2-5, 6-5, 3-2)
Drunk People at the Local Tavern 2-1 Torisakia (4-5, 2-1, 11-2)
Quebecois Acadiana 1-2 Hampton Island (1-2, 7-2, 4-5)

Final group standings

*                                    Pld   W   D   L    GF   GA   GD   Pts 
1 South Newlandia                    30   21   0   9   169  132  +37    63 Q
2 Hampton Island                     30   20   0  10   154  133  +21    60 Q
3 The Greater Nordics                30   16   0  14   137  130   +7    48
4 Torisakia                          30   14   0  16   116  136  −20    42
5 Drunk People at the Local Tavern   30   10   0  20   133  159  −26    30
6 Quebecois Acadiana                 30    9   0  21   128  147  −19    27

South Newlandia improves their record to a 22-8, very impressive for a team on their second attempt. Just one more scored run, and they would’ve tied for the most scored runs in the tournament, but they were inched out by top seed and title favourite Cassadaigua (They also tied with Banija). The Elephants will now play the team from Hapilopper, who are currently ranked 15th, but have missed the playoffs twice in a row. The Thrashers were playing in Group 5, and they were the only second seed (!) to advance to the knockouts in Newmanistan, behind the defending champions from Nova Anglicana. Hapilopper won 20 of their 30 games, clearly beating out the Equestrian States, Jeckland and Zwangzug, all known to you in some context if you follow South Newlandian sports, and the newcomers from Ihilthracna. The two teams will face off in the McAllister Stadium of Putnam Lake, in the Southwest of the country. We don’t know why they named a baseball stadium after a famous soccer player, but the arena hosts 55,000 people. While that is bigger than any South Newlandian stadiums for anything, it is smaller than some of the places they visited in the Group Stage, and far smaller than the Corps Central Park they played their Ro16 games in last time. Is Hapilopper a lucky draw here? Certainly not. Will South Newlandia have a chance? Certainly, they do. TenNinetyThree.com from Super-Llamaland claims our odds are 42% to advance, and media from Northwest Kalactin even predicted a sweep for the Elephants, and while that is ridiculous, the team does have a chance to advance to the Quarterfinals. If they do, they will either play Northwest Kalactin or Newmanistan, two teams they had played before, with more success against the former. The first two games against Hapilopper will be pitched by Ryan Hunter and Jacob Conroy; we don’t know the order of them yet. Experts suggest Jay Kramer will likely play game three, but there is no way to be sure.

The knockouts feature a bunch of teams that you might know if you follow South Newlandian sports, including Northwest Kalactin, Royal Kingdom of Quebec and Ko-oren, three of the South Newlandian group mates from WBC48, their WBC49 group mate Hampton Island, IBS quarterfinal opponent Sarzonia, semi-final opponent Tikariot and 3-place playoff opponent Cassadaigua (even though the IBS teams from Sarzonia and Cassadaigua were youth teams), IBS11 hosts Super-Llamaland, Delaclava, which is the country the South Newlandian soccer team played their BoF72 group stage in, and Newmanistan, the current host and the team the Elephants lost against in the Ro16 of WBC48. No fewer than ten of the fifteen teams in the knockouts are from nations South Newlandian teams either played in or against.

The big stats report

Like we did after half of the games, we will take a look at the detailed performances of each player. Once again, we will start with the starting pitchers, move on to the bullpen next and look at the batters last.

After 30 games in total, each of the starting pitchers has played six games.

Jacob Conroy: 6-0; 0.30 r/i REMAINED
Conroy remains the best starting pitcher from South Newlandia. He hasn’t dropped a game yet, and he holds a great r/i too. If someone can bring the Elephants even deeper into this tournament, it might be him, he has the experience and strength to do it.

Ryan Hunter: 3-3; 0.49 r/i IMPROVED
Hunter only won one of his games in the second half, but he allowed very few runs, especially in the last two games. He essentially was just unlucky. Hunter seems to have gotten his bear-fear behind him, and is back to old power.

Blake Robbins: 3-3; 0.76 r/i; 1 run IMPROVED
Robbins is still the worst among the starting pitchers, but you could see a good improvement over the second half, when he won two of three games. The oldest among the South Newlandian pitchers is definitely just as important as everyone else, and the Elephants can’t afford him playing worse again. There is something else to mention about him; while all other starters have similar numbers of innings (37, 39, 40, 40), Robbins has only played 34. He might have to work on that, too.

Larry Cain: 3-3; 0.51 r/i IMPROVED
Cain also improved his game, but similar to Hunter, he has been a little bit unlucky with some close games. The only all-new South Newlandian pitcher has been doing solidly, and his games in the second half were better than those from the first across the board.

Jay Kramer: 6-0; 0.35 r/i IMPROVED
Kramer has been surprising all of us. The nineteen year old has been dominating, not dropping a single game, and gave just two tiny runs more up than the big star of the team. If he can keep up this work, even under pressure, he might be the big star of the team soon. What he has been doing at the Slam was great, but this is unbelievable.

The starters, combined: 0.474 r/i


The three closers all pitched in 10 games. Let’s take a look how they, and the rest of the bullpen, did.

Barnaby Butt: 7-3; 0.59 r/i; 1 run REMAINED
Butt has been doing well. There is not much more to say, those have been fairly standard performances. He still struggles under pressure, and he needs to keep doing well against Hapilopper, otherwise, it would be difficult for the Elephants.

Fabio Paul: 8-2; 0.32 r/i GOT WORSE
Claiming that Paul got worse is almost an insult. He still holds the second-best r/i, but compared to his first half (0.08 r/i), he isn’t doing as extraordinarily well. Still, he is the best and most important closer for South Newlandia, and saved quite a few games already.

Marcel Adams: 6-4; 0.64 r/i REMAINED
Adams has been the worst closer, but he is decent too. He is dropping a few more games than Butt, but for the most part, it’s been okay. From what we’ve heard, he is not going to be pitching in a potentially deciding game in the playoffs, if that is avoidable.

Dennis Miles: 0-2; 0 r/i
Miles hasn’t pitched a ball in the second half.

Jack Miller: 0
Neither did Miller.

The Bullpen, combined: 0.500 r/i


And here are the batters. All of them have played 30 games, except for Larsen, who played only 24 because of teams not using the Designated Hitter.

(C) Gregor Garner: 7 runs; 0 home runs REMAINED
Garner is still doing terribly. At this rate, we have to ask ourselves why Burn hasn’t been considered yet. The young IBS talent might be the way to go, as Garner is sitting on just seven runs, not even one in four games. That shouldn’t be enough for the team, to be honest.

(1B) Adam King: 21 runs; 2 home runs IMPROVED
King might be the player that improved himself the most. He had only six runs without a homer after five series, but that has massively changed. He is back to his old strength from WBC48 and IBS11, and we sure hope he can continue this way.

(2B) Igor White: 13 runs; 2 home runs GOT WORSE
White has made the opposite development. Only four runs and no homers are probably not what he hoped to achieve in the second half after a strong start. White and Garner, right next to each other in the line-up, are currently a big weakness, and not only Sophia Smiths is wondering why she hasn’t been on the field and at bat yet.

(SS) David Drum: 14 runs; 1 home run GOT WORSE
Drum hasn’t been doing too great so far. It isn’t quite what he achieved in the IBS, but it isn’t terrible either. He surely still has room for improvement, but the young shortstop can be happy with his performance so far, as his fielding has been very well.

(3B) Ian Pearce: 13 runs; 0 home runs IMPROVED
Ian Pearce also massively improved himself, more than tripling his run count from only the first half. He obviously profited from Ventura and Larsen, but he has been playing much better himself, too.

(LF) Daryl Dunlop: 21 runs; 4 home runs REMAINED
Dunlop has been terrific, too, even though his first half was a bit better. He could go for a bit more at the moment, but he has been doing very well over all. The twenty-two-year-old had a great IBS, and he is continuing here.

(CF) Shawn Zimmerman: 17 runs; 4 home runs REMAINED
Zimmerman, another young talent first spotted at the IBS, has been doing fantastically too. Four home runs are pretty great for an eighteen-year-old, and so are seventeen runs; he hope he can continue this on.

(RF) Fabio Ventura: 34 runs; 8 home runs REMAINED
Ventura is, to put it simply, overpowered. There is no other word to describe him; he has been a nightmare to the pitchers. It has really been amazing what he does, as no one expected him to keep up his numbers from the first half, but he managed to do it.

(DH) Mike Larsen: 27 runs; 3 home runs REMAINED
Larsen is doing great as well, but he doesn’t have to focus on fielding either, and had two additional rest days. He is another young talent that might become very important eventually, if he isn’t already.

The fielders (and pitchers) combined: 169 runs; 24 home runs

[Newmanistan]

(1) Cassadaigua vs (16) TJUN-ia @ Emperor Michael I Stadium, Pocono City
Game 1

TJUN-ia                      0 0 0 1 1 2 0 0 2  6
Cassadaigua                  0 0 0 0 0 4 1 0 2  7

Game 2

TJUN-ia                      0 1 0 2 1 0 0 1 1  6
Cassadaigua                  0 2 0 0 6 1 0 0 X  9

Cassadaigua leads series, 2-0

(8) Delaclava vs (9) Sarzonia @ Keisler Stadium, Southport
Game 1

Sarzonia                     0 0 1 0 0 0 0 1 0  2
Delaclava                    0 0 0 0 0 0 4 0 X  4

Game 2

Sarzonia                     1 0 0 1 0 0 2 0 1  5
Delaclava                    0 0 0 0 1 0 0 1 0  2

Series tied, 1-1

(5) Banija vs (12) Super-Llamaland @ The Jungle, Loudon
Game 1

Super-Llamaland              0 0 0 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 1  3
Banija                       0 0 0 1 0 0 1 0 0 0 0  2

Game 2

Super-Llamaland              0 0 0 1 1 0 1 0 0  3
Banija                       2 0 0 0 1 1 0 1 X  5

Series tied, 1-1

(4) The Sherpa Empire vs (13) Royal Kingdom of Quebec @ Gladiator Stadium, Olympia
Game 1

Royal Kingdom of Quebec      2 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0  4
The Sherpa Empire            0 0 0 2 0 0 0 0 1  3

Game 2

Royal Kingdom of Quebec      0 3 1 0 0 2 0 0 0  6
The Sherpa Empire            1 0 0 0 3 0 0 0 3  7

Series tied, 1-1

(6) South Newlandia vs (11) Hapilopper @ McAllister Stadium, Putnam Lake
Game 1

Hapilopper                   0 0 0 1 1 5 1 0 0  8
South Newlandia              0 0 0 1 0 0 0 1 0  2

Game 2

Hapilopper                   0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0  0
South Newlandia              0 0 3 0 1 1 0 0 X  5

Series tied, 1-1

(3) Newmanistan vs (14) Northwest Kalactin @ Tundra Falls Proving Grounds, Tundra Falls (scorinated by Chromatika)
Game 1

Northwest Kalactin           0 0 1 0 0 0 1 0 1  3
Newmanistan                  0 1 0 0 5 0 1 0 X  7

Game 2

Northwest Kalactin           0 0 0 1 3 0 2 0 0  6
Newmanistan                  0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0  1

Series tied, 1-1


(7) Ko-oren vs (10) Hampton Island @ Empress Jessica I Stadium, Jessicaville
Game 1

Hampton Island               0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 1  2
Ko-oren                      0 0 1 2 2 0 0 0 X  5

Game 2

Hampton Island               0 0 1 0 1 0 4 0 0  6
Ko-oren                      0 1 3 0 2 0 0 2 X  8

Ko-oren leads series, 2-0


(2) Nova Anglicana vs (15) Tikariot @ The Fire Pit, Centralia
Game 1

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

Game 2

Tikariot                     0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0  0
Nova Anglicana               0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1  1

Nova Anglicana leads series, 2-0

[Northwest Kalactin]

3 Kalactanian Youth Baseball Players Involved in Sexual Assault Allegations
Despite the relatively good news of the Kalactanians being able to win a game at the Tundra Falls Proving Ground recently, there was much larger news that made headlines across the nation over the weekend, troubling ones. Joe Diaz, Ron Lee and Adam Campbell were all accused of sexual assault by a group of 7 women thatdiled allegations against them over the weekend. All 7 said in their reports that they were inappropriately touched by the 3 players, which could mean multiple years in jail for the players.

All 3 players are included in the NJBDL, or the National Junior Baseball Development League, which us the largest and most prestigious league for players between the ages of 15-18. All 3 players hope to make the professional stages one day, but this news could very well end their careers, before they even started. Diaz is a star Shortstop for the Gold Coast Demons, and Lee plays catcher on the same team. Campbell is a power hitting First Baseman for the Gold Coast Bombers.

All 3 players know each other very well, they have played with each other since they started travel baseball at 9 years old, and know each other well. They often train together, and Campbell played with the 2 others for the Demons when he was 15. Diaz and Campbell are both 18, while Lee is 1 year younger at 17 Years of age. The woman that filed the allegations were all between the ages of 18-23, and the number of files is growing, which may lead to findings that others were involved in the case also.

Unfortunately, this is not the first time that we have seen trouble among young Kalactanian athletes. Just 2 years ago, 4 Fountain of Youth International players were involved in an Armed Robbery and Murder case, which sent 3 of them to over 10 years of prison time. It is sad that we have seen so many young athletes from the nation fall victim to legal issues, and the number seems to be growing. This is a developing case, and we hope to bring you guys a new report on it soon, but for now, thanks for watching Sporting News Kalactin.

[The Sherpa Empire]

On the flight to Olympia, Luochong Zhuang was babbling about vaccines -- how they worked, how the first ones had been discovered, etc. He was supposed to be studying a scouting report on the Quebecois batters, but he'd gotten side-tracked. Daki Chuan was sitting near Zhuang because she could trust him not to be insulting or vulgar. But she wasn't really that interested in vaccines.

"Did you know Akunjee was married?" she asked, with no regrets about interrupting Zhuang in the middle of his science lesson.

Zhuang turned toward her, startled at the interruption. "Oh, yeah!" he said. "His wife is great. She paints watercolors and she's into robotics because she has those robotic hands. I can talk to her for hours..."

"You talk to people for hours no matter what," said Chuan. "But, like, why didn't anyone tell me he was married?"

"I thought you knew," said Zhuang. "A lot of girls still want to flirt with him even if they know. I wish I was good at talking to women like Akunjee is."

"Oh, he's not good at talking to women!" said Chuan. "He's a good-looking guy, but the way he acts around women is really gross."

A few minutes later, Zhuang was back to rambling about vaccines.

"Hey, Zhuang," said Chuan.

"What?"

"I'm not interested in vaccines."

Zhuang looked crestfallen. "So what are you interested in?" he asked.

"Besides baseball? Hmm... I like gourmet food and wine. When I retire from pitching, I want to start a winery."

"Oh, wine is fascinating!" Zhuang perked up and forgot all about the vaccines as he realized he'd found a common interest they could talk about. He started babbling about wine -- the fermenting and aging process, the health benefits, and so on.

Chuan's first thought was, Oh no, here he goes again! but after a while she found herself responding to stuff Zhuang had said, and soon they were having a normal conversation about wine.

In another row of seats, Xiao Wen was peppering Kami Akunjee with questions about what was happening between him and Chuan. Had they made up after their fight? What was the fight about? Had they slept together? "Is she good in bed?" Wen asked.

"I just told you she never slept with me!" said Akunjee.

"Come on, man, she was hanging out with you all the time," said Wen.

"Yeah, but she wasn't sleeping with me."

When they arrived in Olympia it was back to business -- except Zhuang's head was still in the clouds. He couldn't believe his luck: He'd actually managed to have a normal conversation with a woman! She even looked like she was enjoying it and not just humoring him. During warm-ups, he was all over the place, even hitting Pei Tan in the head with a wild pitch. The ball bounced off Tan's mask without causing any serious injury, and Zhuang apologized profusely, but Tan was not amused. While Tan took a moment to regain his composure, Lee talked to Zhuang, telling him to get his act together.

Zhuang did his best to pull it together, but he was a couple innings into the game before he really found his groove. After two innings, the Grim Reapers were up 4-0. In the bottom of the 9th, it was 4-2, and the Sherpas got a couple of runners on base. It looked like they might come back to win it. Zia hit a line-drive deep into center-left field. Qiang scored. The 3rd base coach waved Ananthan around, thinking he could beat the throw to the plate -- but he had underestimated the strength of Hannah Choe's arm. She threw the ball to Choo and Ananthan was tagged out at home plate.

Meanwhile, Wangdi Ai had spent a good chunk of the game grumbling to the other pitchers about Lee's decision to leave Zhuang at the top of the rotation. Ai said he had only done it out of political correctness, because Zhuang didn't complain about having a woman on the team.

The next day, Ai took the mound feeling confident, almost cocky. He was going to show everyone once and for all that he was a better pitcher than Zhuang. Or he thought he was. Unfortunately, the events on the field did not play out according to the script in Ai's head. His start was even worse than Zhuang's, giving up 6 runs in 6 innings. 5 of the runs were earned; the 6th was due to a throwing error by Tianling Qiao.

However, the Sherpa bats had not been silent. The score was 6-4 when Qiao came to bat with the bases loaded in the bottom of the 9th. The Quebecois closer Farias was known to be less reliable against left-handed hitters, but he was still allowed to pitch to the left-handed Qiao. This was Qiao's chance to redeem himself after that embarrassing throwing error. And sure enough, he made solid contact with the ball. For a moment, he even thought it might clear the outfield wall for a home run, but instead it bounced off the wall and fell back onto the field. Qiao wouldn't have made it home for an inside-the-park home run, but he did drive in the other 3 runners for a walk-off win. The earlier throwing error was forgotten and the series was tied at one game apiece.

[TJUN-ia]

TJUN-ia was going to make history no matter if Cassadaigua whopped their asses on live TV - the fact that the Jags were even in Pocono City, facing the No.1 team in all of U3 baseball, was a miracle in the first place. We entered the group stage 43rd, with an outside shot of making it to Newmanistan. Now they were there, the 16th seeds and the underdogs in the eyes of everyone. According to 100,000 simulations of this tournament by a computer in Super-Llamaland, Phillip Hellas-Verona's men won 297 of them. It's certainly better than many were expecting, and it shows. Chelsea Dufresne, of the Concord Heights Times, even made an unacceptable remark about TJUN-ian culture itself. My message for her is this: we didn't expect to be here in the first place, so we'll take what we can. I suggest she looks at herself in the mirror and asks why she is making fun of the culture of a peaceful nation when she is clearly still salty over that World Bowl game in New Washington. The Dagans are pretty tough, as the no.1 seeds should be, but TJUN-ia was just here to have fun no matter if the trip was as short as possible.

---

GAME 1
The starting duel would be between Kayla Mason and Chris Harris - I'd never thought I'd say that, but here we are. The first few innings showed TJUN-ia why the playoffs are very different to the group stage: neutral ground meant that Dagan, TJUN-ian and Newmanistani alike mingled in the stands of Emperor Michael I Stadium and it showed. The atmosphere was tense and nervy throughout the game, as if the fate of the world depended on the result - well, in a baseball context, I guess it did.

Anyway, the first 3 innings were a tense affair as neither team seemed to find anything on the other. As it turned out, it would be the Battin' Jags who struck first via a home run by non-other than Pedro Moires in the 4th. Another run was added in the 5th and then Moires hit a 2-run homer in the 6th. In the space of 2 and a half innings, TJUN-ia was 4-0 up of the 1 seeds and many were a bit surprised. But then the Dagan machine awoke: 4 runs in a dominate 6th then Meghan Townsend came in and tore the batting line up apart. Another run in the 7th saw the 4 run lead turn into a 1-run deficit in as little as 10 minutes. That was what we were dealing with in this game. Another 2-run homer, this time from Ki Yung-son in the 9th, put the Jags on top again but then the Dagans unleashed their power and walked off the game via a 2-run homer of their own from Jordyn Prosser. We expected to be destroyed - instead, we were walked off. Baseball is crazy, isn't it?

GAME 2
After that game, this one saw Samantha Owens take on Davis Johnson. Their early performances were not as great, Owens conceding 1 and Johnson 2. TJUN-ia then did their usual business of scoring 4 runs before the Dagans took over. In this case, a 2-run bomb in the 4th by Bryce Calhoun helped the Jags reach that magic number before the Dagans responded with 6 of their own. Talk about shutting down the haters. Another run for them made this game insurmountable, but we still managed to score a few more runs before we were eventually struck out.

0-2 was going to happen, but this was closer than many expected. We only lost by a combined 4 runs over the 2 games, so there is something to cheer about even if the Dagan machine is impossible to slow down. Team Cassadiagua will be looking for the sweep tomorrow and it will be a miracle if this series goes on longer than that. GO JAGS!

---

PLAYOFF SCHEDULE
Round of 16 - vs Cassadaigua (1) - Emperor Michael I Stadium, Pocono City
Game 1: L 6-7 (0-1)
Game 2: L 6-9 (0-2)
Game 3:
Game 4:
Game 5:

[Ko-oren]

Part I: Selpernim 1, WBC
Part II: Selpernim 2, RLWC

A summer of sports with Leligun Thernasthen

Selpernim 3/Sweltersky 3

Constillán

I'm writing you this from a bus between Ferrovente and Constillán - or rather, part of this is written from that bus. No new scores from the Rugby League World Cup, but the Dragonflies of that sport should kick off any second now... I actually don't know, I've lost sense of time a little bit on this bus. Half-full, thankfully with working airconditioning, with a driver that points at the 'no talking to the bus driver' sign every time I have a question, and the only thing to distract me being the desert landscape that covers over 80% of the province of Finisterre. The temperature is fine, there are some other travellers here, which haven't started a singalong (no backpackers on a bus at this hour, making me a very happy Leligun). My stance on striking up a conversation with fellow travellers is very 50-50: at heart, I like adventure, and that comes with plenty of extraverted talking. On the other hand, I have to get some writing done. Back again on the one hand, stories don't get made without interaction... But here I am, listening to the radio (with headphones on! I'm not a monster) as the ex-Dragonflies play their second game against Hampton Island in the Round of 16 at the World Baseball Classic. Bouncing back from a horrible cycle, following a final appearance against Banija, we're actually due another good finish. Which means that the World Baseball Classic will appear quite a bit along my travels, because the postseason of this tournament alone outlasts the Rugby League World Cup and almost makes it through the entire AOCAF and WCOH as well.

Baseball moves along at a pace slow enough so I can type this out and read up on the tournament as a whole, as well. I would say that, though the Ko-orenite national team are scoring their sixth run as I speak, making for a far more eventful game than most I've seen. Probably the most interesting piece of new media that has spawned in this cycle is TenNinetyThree's ELO-style predictions, something that has been experimented with (at least in the pythagoran expectation part of it) by amateurs locally, but now done far better internationally. You'd almost wonder why Jarongi (a sports-and-stastics company from Ko-oren, for the international readers) haven't done this before. Anyway, Ko-oren are ranked sixth, with a 61% of making it to the next round. With an almost 2-0 lead in the series (don't let me jinx this right now, typing this from the seventh inning), that number should be a lot higher in an hour and a half time. The semifinals are ours in about 25% of cases, we'd make the finals with an 11% possibility, and we take home the trohpy in 5% of 100,000 simulations. Not bad at all, though not as good as Nova Anglicana (21%), Cassadaigua (19%), Newmanistan, the Sherpa Empire, or Banija. We're only marginally favoured over Sarzonia, Hapilopper, Hampton Island, South Newlandia, and Delaclava - any team beneath that has almost no chance to make the next round. Knowing the WBC, that means that all five teams under that line will make the quarterfinals, with two of them going to the semifinals. Not bitter about this tournament at all, but if any big World Cup has randomness, it's this one.

Something else that just hit me, while I should have known: central Finisterre has nothing going on. Between my home and Constillán, there's nothing. It's nearly 2.5 hours of driving through barren landscape, except for the occasional hill, cactus, or particularly large or interesting rock formation. It's not a boring flat stretch by any means, but it's empty. There's a huge difference between coastal Finisterre, with its small yet lively towns that are almost self-sufficient, and the inland Finisterre, barren, hot, empty, and did I say empty. Even then, there's a far sharper difference between parts of Finisterre: the inner coast and the outer coast.

The inner coast is where Santa Teresa and Finisterre are. Somewhat densely populated, tonnes of events and sports teams, colourful bazaars, calm ocean, sandy beaches, with towns dotting the coast line. Then there's the outer coast, which so far I've only seen on TV. Apart from the stories from those that have lived there and since moved to Ferrovente, that is. As Constillán comes into view, I see the truth in those stories: in between these towns, there's far more nothing. Towns are formed on liveable inlets and bays, with fishing boats lining the beach, the occasional hotel tourist trap on the cliffs, but most notably nothing of the colourfulness, breeziness, or easy-going nature of the inner coast. Constillán's closest settlement is Zarucope to the south, or Sapumín to the north - Zarucope home to barely 10,000 souls - with some farms and towns in between, but those don't show up on the map as they're under 10,000 inhabitants, the more or less official cut-off line to show up on a map. Also, another note on Ko-orenite maps: smaller settlements can be shown together as one if they're close together so they, combined, get over that 10,000 threshold, the fate for many towns in rural areas. At least Constillán has a connection to a larger city: the other places I've mentioned don't have direct buses or links to the cities. You first have to get to Constillán, and get to Ferrovente from there. The only other inter-desert connection is Blanrasco-Esporro, but that's far towards the north.

Constillán at least has something going for it: the ferry line to Nitoya departs from there. Instead of the docks barely large enough for fishing barges, this has a proper visitor's centre for people like me to depart the mainland and try out the islands of Yoshima.

I really wished I could say more about Constillán. Having bussed through it from west to east, I can appreciate that over 50,000 people live here, making it the seventh largest place in Finisterre. It also has a football team, which has finished in 11th place (out of 12) in the 4th division B - the lowest level before you get to local amateur leagues. This league has teams from Finisterre, eastern Cote Austral, and southeastern Surbourneshire, so they've got quite the home advantage. This makes them the worst team in Finisterre, actually, too. Baseball, somehow, escaped Constillán, but there are teams in Luneda, Zarucope, and Pierio instead - all carbon-copy towns, barely 20,000 people. Instead of the friendly bazaars of the inner coast, we've got baseball diamonds with brown grass - if there's grass at all - some sun-bleached, er, bleachers, surrounding the field where the entire town pours into around sunset, hopefully to see a win for their town, looking at these visitors as if they're from a different world. In one of these towns, it might as well be a different world. There's a certain romance to it, but at the same time, if you were to move here, you'd be a stranger forever. The spicy smell of the inner coast definitely exists here as well - my ferry's leaving after dinner and will get to Nitoya overnight - but despite my attempts, I had no invitations to dinner anywhere. The 'friendly native' stereotype did leave Constillán, then. I'm off to the local Viola (supermarket) to get myself some dinner. I hope I can find a microwave anywhere.

The entire Dragonflies-or-not debate doesn't play out here either. The national team are the Dragonflies, and despite all of our national teams called that, everyone knows you're refering to the baseball kind. Cactuses are just the Finisterrans, and the rest don't matter. Even if Constillán is the only town with a link to Yoshima from here, nothing hints at the Islanders existing. The national team is just the national team, and a win, whoever the MVP of the day is, is celebrated. As far as the locals are concerned, they're the Dragonflies. Tomorrow I'll find myself in a world where that's different at least. I couldn't find anything about it in this sleepy desert town, but does our team have a different nickname yet?

[Sarzonia]

It almost doesn't matter what sport it is. Sarzonia and Delaclava simply can't seem to get away from each other if they wanted to.

Not that they would. The neighbouring countries have a unique, special relationship that once led to a saying south of the border, "What does a Delaclav call playing in Sarzonia? Home field advantage." The two countries are each other's fiercest rivals on the various pitches they compete on, but are often friends away from the competition of sport.

In the World Baseball Classic, Sarzonia's Stars and Delaclava's Phoenixes meet as the eighth seeded Phoenixes are through as Group 6 winners after the disqualification of Free Republics and the Stars are through as Group 2 runners up. They do battle in the eight v. nine series at Keisler Stadium in Southport.

For Sarzonia, they have to play Games 1, 2, and 5 without designated hitter Luke Brinkley in the starting lineup since the Phoenixes don't use the DH in home games. That would end up being a factor in Game 1 of the best-of-five series as that moves rightfielder Kenny Evans into the cleanup spot in the batting order. He went 0-for-4 in Game 1, but manager Geoff Yancey said his biggest regret in Game 1 was leaving in starting pitcher Mark Conroy despite Delaclava loading the bases in the bottom of the seventh inning with a walk, a hit batsman, and an infield squibber that second baseman Ian Danielson couldn't field in time to get an out.

That set the stage for disaster for everyone in the grey kits with navy trim as leftfielder Owen Clark turned on a flat fastball that got too much of the plate. The grand slam took much of the wind out of Sarzonia's sails,and even Brinkley, pinch hitting for first baseman Cody Frazier, hitting a mammoth solo homer to left in the eighth inning failed to awaken the Stars offence in Sarzonia's 4-2 defeat.

Game 2 saw Jeff Parrish take the mound with all the pressure in the world on his shoulders. If the Stars lost, they would have to run the table, which felt unlikely even with Brinkley in the lineup in Games 3 and 4. Fortunately for Yancey, Parrish would be as sharp as he proved to be during the group stage. He threw a complete game and limited the Phoenixes to two runs while Evans rebounded from a tough Game 1 by going two-for-four with a two-run shot in the seventh inning that gave Parrish all the breathing room he needed. Parrish even helped his own cause with a looping double to right to score shortstop Christine Andersen to provide the final margin of victory.

Sarzonia's 5-2 victory in Game 2 means the Stars will turn to Jamie Pearson to start Game 3 against Phoenixes ace Ryan Dausch. Yancey said he would start erstwhile fifth starter Brian Lynch in Game 4 if Sarzonia won Game 3, but he would start Conroy on short rest if the Stars lost. If the Stars make it to a Game 5, Conroy would start if the Phoenixes won Game 4 to force a deciding fifth game, but if the Stars won Game 4 with Conroy on the mound, Parrish would get the ball.

"Postseason baseball is a completely different experience from a group stage or a regular season," Yancey said. When asked about former No. 2 starter Uriel Jimenez, Yancey said he was working on mechanical flaws in his pitching motion and added that Jimenez likely needed the rest.

"He's pitched a lot and he hit a wall during the Classic," Yancey said. "We're hoping this gives him a chance to help us out when we need him."

[Nova Anglicana]

Lions win with bats, win with gloves in first two games of Round of 16

Samantha Maxwell, Londinium Courier

Here in Newmanistan, after two games, the Lions' Round of 16 series sees them leading the Tikariot Thunderforge two games to none. They've done it in two different ways: in game one, they activated the bats to score eight runs, and in game two, pitching and defense were their salvation, as they shut out the Thunderforge. That kind of versatility is important on the world stage, as good teams have to win any way they can. Let's take a look at each game in a little more detail.

Cory Sharpe was the Lions' best pitcher in the group stage, and everyone was rooting for him to avoid the early-inning jitters he'd displayed in WBC 48. Facing three tough lefties in the second, he allowed two of them to reach base, and then JJ Bernadetti smacked a clean single to center to score Foster Fleming. With only one out, one run in, and two on, new pitching coach Nick Berry came out to talk to Sharpe. Whatever he said must have worked, as Sharpe struck out William Carruthers and the pitcher, De'Andre Stevens to end the inning. Down 1-0, the Lions' Jake Bryan led off with a walk. Matthew Gilbert flied out, but a stray changeup to Jerome Duplantier drifted out over the plate and Duplantier whacked it into right-center for a double. Marc Dufors was up next, and he slashed a fastball down the third-base line, just out of the reach of the 17 year-old Fleming. Although Michael Romanov was able to hold Dufors to a single with a strong throw, Bryan and Duplantier both scored to give the Lions the lead. Trevor Goodwin rapped a single to right, and Cory Sharpe's sacrifice bunt put runners on third and second with two down for Tommy Moran. Moran used an inside out swing to turn an inside fastball from Stevens in a line drive single to right, which scored Dufors, making it 3-1. Stevens retired Luke Mills, but the Lions had the lead.

In the third inning, Joey Keller led off with a smash double to left-center, and moved up to third on Bryan's sharp single to right. Gilbert hit a fly ball that fell just short of the wall in center, and Keller scored from third. Duplantier hit a grounder that forced Bryan, but he beat out the back end to keep the inning alive. With two down, Marc Dufors hit another wayward changeup from Stevens, sending it soaring into the air toward right-center. It clanged off the wall, and took a funny hop, rolling past JJ Bernardetti. This allowed Duplantier to rumble home, but Bernardetti recovered and made a brilliant throw to nab Dufors, who was digging for third at that point. But it was 5-1 Lions, and Keller hit a three-run homer the next inning, chasing Stevens and putting the Lions up 8-1. Cory Sharpe tossed seven innings, allowing one more run and earning the win. The Lions had won with their bats, 8-2.

In game 2, Wyatt Templeton took on the fireballing youngster, Patrick Lundgren, and both of them put on a show. Templeton retired the first eleven batters he saw, seven via strikeout, before the Iceman, Yosvani Fernandez, drew a walk in the fourth. Templeton then retired the next six hitters in a row before Michael Romanov ended the no-hitter with a sharp single to left in the sixth. As for Lundgren, his fastball was wild, but he got hitters to chase and made good use of his off-speed pitches. Despite walking four and hitting a batter, he pitched seven innings of shutout baseball, only allowing three hits along the way. He was finally lifted with two on and one out in the eighth. This was the Thunderforge's chance to score. Manager Graham McCrory sent up Blair Consigliere. Consigliere is known for being a bit of a party boy off the field, but he has tremendous talent. Lions manager Mark Singleton made the long, slow walk out to the mound. Templeton was visibly upset and pleaded with Singleton to let him keep pitching, but Singleton only held out his hand for the ball, and Templeton relented.

In came Dallas Hawkins, one of the finest left-handed closers in the NABL, to take on Consigliere. Hawkins started him with three fastballs outside of the zone, which resulted in a 2-1 count. Behind in the count, you'd expect a fastball, but Hawkins unleashed his biting slider and Consigliere swung through, making it 2-2. Two more fouled-off fastballs later, the seventh pitch of the at-bat was Hawkins' curve. It started out almost at Consigliere's chest, and he initially bent out of the way. But the ball broke back over the plate, and by the time he realized what was happening, it was too late to do anything but wave at the pitch and miss. Hawkins pumped his fist and screamed into his glove. Two down. Michael Romanov was even more dangerous, but Hawkins got him to chase a 1-2 back-foot slider and the inning was over. Charlie Bowers pitched the ninth, and the Lions entered the bottom of the inning with the score still tied, 0-0.

McCrory chose lefty specialist Randall McCarthy to face lefties Duplantier, Dufors, and Goodwin to start the ninth. Duplantier struck out on a split-finger pitch, but Dufors lined a palmball into left for a solid single. Singleton then sent up Curtis Hughes to pinch hit for Goodwin, and McCrory responded by bringing in his set-up man, Flint Carmona. Hughes pounded a ball into the ground on Carmona's sinker, but it made it past Foster Fleming. But in an incredible turn of events, Carlton Baines, the Thunderforge shortstop, reached the ball, turned and made a jump throw to first to get the lumbering Hughes. It was a great defensive play, but Dufors was on second. Tommy Moran then grounded out to the right side, moving Dufors up to third. Luke Mills stepped to the plate and McCrory went to his closer, Rory McElhinney. Mills, batting from the right side, fouled off three of the first five pitches to run the count to 2-2. McElhinney missed with a back-foot slider, and the count was full. The Thunderforge closer then elected to challenge Mills with a high fastball, and the Lions shortstop was up to the challenge, whacking the ball over a leaping Baines to fall in shallow left-center, scoring Dufors and triggering a dogpile celebration. The Lions were up 2-0, and had proven they could win both ways, with offense, and with pitching.

Games 3 and 4 of the series will occur over the next two days, with Dan Cunningham taking on Graham Pettersson in game 3, and Hank Jackson, listed as the game 4 starter, matching up against Garrett Yarbrough. Jackson, previously the #5 starter and an opener in the Lions' last run, is being promoted in the wake of his good group stage campaign. It's a shame he won't be batting, as Tikariot uses the DH and will be the home team for both games. Previously, I had said that Tikariot would be the home team for game two, but I was misinformed. Good luck to the Lions and keep rooting at home!

Nova Anglicana lineup against Tikariot
2B Tommy Moran
SS Luke Mills
LF Joey Keller
1B Jake Bryan/Erik Austin (Bryan game 3, Austin game 4)
CF Matthew Gilbert
RF Jerome Duplantier
3B Marc Dufors/Kelvin Hill (Dufors game 3, Hill game 4)
DH Curtis Hughes
C Trevor Goodwin

Notes from around the Classic

-Even though Cassadaigua has won their first two games against TJUN-ia, they trailed 4-0 and 6-5 in game one, then 4-2 in game two. Just shows they don't give up when the chips are down. What a team.

-Ko-oren is facing Hampton Island, and in a matchup of two top-10 teams, you'd think it'd be pretty close. But the Dragonflies have never trailed and have won both games. Either team would be a tough foe should the Lions advance, but the Dragonflies look hot right now.

-That wraps up the 2-0 series. The other five series split their games. Some aren't surprising, like Sarzonia-Delaclava, or Banija-Super-Llamaland. The Stars and the Phoenixes are longtime rivals in many sports, and Super-Llamaland is a great baseball nation, even unranked against the #2 team in the world. But Newmanistan-Northwest Kalactin feels odd as a 1-1 series. No disrespect to the Kalactanians, but they aren't the best baseball nation out there and Newmanistan at home feels like an easy win. Let's see if they can keep it up.

-The other series are The Sherpa Empire against The Royal Kingdom of Quebec, and South Newlandia against the Lions' former groupmates, Hapilopper. The Sherpas and the Quebecois have played two close games, with Quebec holding on in game one and the Sherpas rallying in game two. I like Banija in the next series against either of them, but it might be nice to see Quebec, a nation that's been entering WBCs for some time but with little success, experience the joys of a WBC quarterfinal for once. Meanwhile, South Newlandia or Hapilopper would presumably get Newmanistan in the next series. The Elephants are an up-and-coming WBC team, which you always want to root for, but the Thrashers have a singular mission in mind: winning. Hapilopper came into the WBC fired up and would be really disappointed going out in the first round.

[South Newlandia]

ELEPHANT VALLEY MAIL
Sports -> Baseball
Elephants get their first ever playoff win!

No one thought the Thrashers would be an easy matchup. The team from Hapilopper was really well prepared, as they really wanted to go to the quarterfinals, just like South Newlandia. No one knew that the Hapiloppan fans would be well-prepared, though. The first two games between the two teams resulted in one win for either side, and nothing is decided yet. Both games ended with quite clear results, different to some other matchups, there weren’t any really close games. The win in the second game was also the first ever WBC playoff win for the Elephants, while game one had been the first such win for the Thrashers. Both teams could be happy with their performance, to be honest.

Hapilopper                   0 0 0 1 1 5 1 0 0  8
South Newlandia              0 0 0 1 0 0 0 1 0  2

The first game would be pitched by Ryan Hunter for the Elephants, while Curtis Skinner was on the mount for the Thrashers. Skinner is 56 years old and somehow still a fantastic pitcher. We don’t know how or why, but he became a nightmare for the Elephants. After three scoreless innings, the Thrashers went ahead first in the fourth after a solo home run, but South Newlandia would equalize right back thanks to a run for Adam King. Hapilopper went ahead again in the fifth, and this time, the Elephants couldn’t equalize instantly. Then came the sixth inning; it would be the deciding one for this game. After Hunter had gotten an out and allowed a single, a fan in the stands in the new shiny playoff uniform of Hapilopper, in clear sight of Ryan Hunter, raised something over his head. It was a giant cut-out of a bear that vaguely resembled one Hunter only knew too well – Midnight. While the fan “roared like an idiot” (Anthony Smith-Miller, after the game), Hunter looked like he saw the incident flashing before his eyes again. Damian Bolton called a timeout, but Hunter wanted to keep pitching. That was a bad idea. He wound up giving four runs away on the next three batters, including no fewer than two home runs, and Hapilopper had another batter on third now. Sansara decided to get Fabio Paul into the game early, but he couldn’t avoid giving up another run in the sixth and one in the seventh, putting South Newlandia behind 1-8. That simply wasn’t possible anymore, but at least Ian Pearce picked up a late run in the 8th to make the defeat slightly less embarrassing.

Hapilopper                   0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0  0
South Newlandia              0 0 3 0 1 1 0 0 X  5

The Elephants needed to deliver now. If they would go behind 0-2, it would probably be over soon after that. Fortunately for South Newlandia, Jacob Conroy, the best South Newlandian pitcher, took the mount now, while "Hot Sauce" Gibbs was pitching for the Thrashers. We do not know the origin of this nickname, and we do not think we want to know, to be honest. Some things better remain a mystery. The Elephants got three runs in the third inning after a home run for Igor White with Adam King and Shawn Zimmerman on the bases, and extended their lead with runs scored by Adam King in the fifth and Mike Larsen in the sixth. During all of this, Jacob Conroy had pitched seven innings without allowing a run, with 4 hits, 3 walks and 10 strikeouts. Barnaby Butt didn’t give up any runs either to complete a surprisingly clear victory for South Newlandia to tie the series.
So, what does that mean now for the team? Hunter is back in psychological treatment, Conroy won’t pitch again in this series, and the next two matches will be played without Mike Larsen as Hapilopper doesn’t like the Designated Hitter. The next two games will be more difficult, and the pressure will be on Jay Kramer. He will pitch either the third or the fourth game, but we do not know any more details yet. The Elephants will have to play their best to even reach game five, where Mike Larsen will be back at least.

All matches

(1) Cassadaigua 2-0 TJUN-ia (43) (7-6, 9-6)
(UR) Delaclava 1-1 Sarzonia (28) (4-2, 2-5)
(6) The Sherpa Empire 1-1 Royal Kingdom of Quebec (32) (3-4, 7-6)
(2) Banija 1-1 Super-Llamaland (UR) (2-3, 5-3)
(3) Nova Anglicana 2-0 Tikariot (UR) (8-2, 1-0)
(4) Ko-oren 2-0 Hampton Island (8) (5-2, 8-6)
(5) Newmanistan 1-1 Northwest Kalactin (37) (7-3, 1-6)
(31) South Newlandia 1-1 Hapilopper (15) (2-8, 5-0)


OOC: The following happens ahead of WBC49, before anything else I’ve written this cycle, and is based on Nova’s idea and scorination.
ELEPHANT VALLEY MAIL
Sports -> Baseball
South Newlandia with surprising success against top teams

When the SNBA, the South Newlandian baseball association, received a letter from Nova Anglicana, they were quite confused. The sub-ministry of Sport from Nova Anglicana wanted to invite three teams to something called first-ever Londinium Challenge Invitational, and they wanted to invite Cassadaigua, the top team according to rankings, Banija, the second-ranked team and WBC47 champion, to play Nova Anglicana, the current WBC champ and third-ranked team; and South Newlandia? Why, was the first question the SNBA had, would they want to invite the 31st ranked team that got swept in the Round of 16 of WBC48 without prior history to play against this collection of fantastic teams? They were explained how the entry rules for the Londinium Challenge Invitional, or LCI, work. Nova Anglicana would invite the two teams from the final series, or in this case, as Nova Anglicana was in the final series themselves, the next best team according to the ranks, Banija. They would be joined by the best newcomer team from that WBC. Apparently Sarzonia, who entered unranked but had been to a WBC before, didn’t count, and the Elephants were invited to play in Nova Anglicana against the three best teams of the world. They took this as both a great honour and a great opportunity to test ahead of the WBC, and sent their WBC49 team there to play three games in the group phase, one against each opponent, and then a best of three for either first or third place, expecting nothing better than going 0-5.
Their first game was against Cassadaigua. The Cassadaiguan team ended up performing poorly in the group phase, but with Jay Kramer pitching, the result was still a massive surprise for everyone involved. They had lead the game 2-0 thanks to runs scored by Fabio Ventura and Adam King, and Kramer pitched seven innings without allowing a run. There was some luck involved in that, but the game entered the ninth at 2-0 in favour of the Elephants. A beautiful home run for Fabio Ventura, also scoring Ian Pearce, gained them a 4-0 lead, and Marcel Adams giving up a run in the last inning didn’t matter at all. Somehow, the Elephants had just managed to upset the top ranked team in the world. Meanwhile, the hosts were defeated by Banija 3-7.
The Elephants facing Banija next meant the final series couldn’t be certain after the first two games, and Blake Robbins pitching got his expected beating. They lost the game 3-9, as anyone would’ve expected. Cassadaigua ended up losing again, 3-5 against the Lions. This meant that Banija was guaranteed to play in the final, and Nova Anglicana had to fight the Elephants to get in as well.
The game was pitched by Jacob Conroy, and it started decent enough for the Lions, with their pitcher Dan Cunningham pitching six shutout innings and the Lions leading 2-0 after seven innings. The Elephants got one run back in the eighth, scored by Adam King, but Nova Anglicana was right back ahead by two again after a solo home run scored by Joey Keller. The South Newlandians discovered something new in this game. They managed to get a comeback thanks to another homer for Ventura, getting three runs after Pearce and Dunlop had been on the corners. Butt collected three outs in the last game, and somehow, South Newlandia had beaten the current WBC champions out of the final spot. Finishing ahead of the current champion and the top ranked team was a terrific achievement for South Newlandia.
No one cared that Banija took the team down in the finals without many problems, even though the first of these games actually was quite close as well. They were going to celebrate this second place finish. They didn’t mind that they had finished on a negative record, they didn’t care that it was a small sample size, they didn’t care that they had gotten quite lucky in both of their wins, they earned this.

[Tikariot]

"It is the playoffs at the World Baseball Classic. It is a really odd, but exhilarating feeling being here in Centralia, we made it past the group stage! Standing up here and looking down at what they call The Fire Pit, I still can't believe that we got to this point. A few weeks back we were a nobody on the baseball scene. Noone had even heard our name, let along seen us play. Then came the International Baseball Slam that we won. To this day I have no idea how we managed to get past all of those teams. And then when they gave me the trophy it really sank in - we had won!

We had known that we were going to go to the WBC as well, but we had expected to be eliminated in the groups, then have some time off and get ready for the Classic, but no, we pretty much went straight from the finals to our first series in the Mathuvan Union. God, I was tired when we got there. I know that the coach tried to keep us from celebrating too much, because he was afraid we'd overdo it, but come on, we just did the undoable and win. But we didn't have a choice, we were there to represent, but so many fans, which was great, but so many reporters. At every step someone would shove a microphone or phone or camera into our faces, wanting to know everything under the sun. No mercy. Thanks to the coach for stepping in and getting mad at them, otherwise we'd never have made it to our rooms and get at least some sleep.

The group stage is still like a blur, travel every day, different time zones, different climates, different food, but always reporters and news crews. This was not what I had expected at all. I mean, I knew that there'd be a lot more attention to us, but I had expected the fans to be way pushier than the journalists. But you know what, they were good, they were ecstatic, but respectful. They got it that we needed to have some time to focus and rest, the journos, not so much. But it all went so fast, fly home, play, fly to The Sarian, fly to Ko-oren, back home, and then we were in Falisiand, the last series and again they were there, asking about Falisian, about Quebec, about Ko-oren, about the pressure of winning, I was so sick and tired of hearing about it all, I just wanted to go hide somewhere.

I will admit, I was nervous when I walked out of the tunnel into the dugout at the first game, all the thoughts racing through my head, all the 'what if's and the consequences of all of them. Coming to think of it, I barely remember a thing of that game, other than us losing. I know that I went up to bat a few times, but I don't think I managed to hit a thing. All the while my mind was like a maelstrom. What I do remember, though, was Coach McCrory. Oh he was livid! He told us where to go and how to get there, he knew that we didn't have our heads in the game.

So when we went out for the second game, we really wanted to show that we got what it takes and did that ever backfire... Three innings in and we were down 4-1, Mike at least had managed to score a run, but some idiot kept calling down that Quebec and Ko-oren were up by one and that did not help. Whatsoever. I think it was Billy that almost went up into the stands to yell at the guy to shut up, almost got thrown out of the game by the umpire. But then he got us together and gave us a pep talk. A true Carruthers pep talk. I wasn't sure it was humanly possible to cram this many expletives into so little words, but whatever he did, he hit something, because suddenly my mind was clear. I could hear our fans chanting and it felt so uplifting. But I would look out onto the diamond and I noticed everything, every hand movement, the slight nods. I was almost as if I could feel the diamond.

When Blair hit that single it was almost as if I could see the ball coming and the swing. Then Carlton singled, Steve struck out and I suddenly there was silence. Oh I could see the fans and the other players, but it was like I had achieved this zen state. I walked up to the plate and took up the position. The pitcher would spit, then it was like in slow motion, he'd pull his arm back and let go and it was surreal. I could see the ball come and I knew exactly when to swing and then it hit. I felt the jolt travel through my arm into my shoulder and without looking I knew that this was it. I started to run, threw away the bat and then as I made my way to first base, the noise of the fans came crashing in, it got louder and louder and suddenly that huge cheer. I just kept running and then I was back home and it said 4-4 on the score board.

Billy got a double in and I don't know how Mike did it, but that ball must have gone out of the stadium, 6-4, it was like a dream. Bronson hit a single, Yosvani another one, Foster struck out and Blair stepped up. Again everything went silent and I could see the pitcher and Blair razor sharp, everything else was blurry. The ball came and the moment I heard the thwack of the ball on Blair's bat, I knew, this was another homer. Carlton struck out after that, but 8 runs, 9-4, I felt the adrenaline rising! Then we scored a run in every inning and nobody cared about that home run of Falisiand in the eighth. 13-6! We had this! Then the coach told us that Quebec had won, too, so we were back at where we were.

Game three was like a rollercoaster ride. They went up, we equalized, they went back up by three runs, we shot back with five and we won! We hadn't heard anything from the Mathuvan Union yet, but we knew that we were done. We were third. Don't get me wrong, it was a great result for our first time, but still, we were so close. The realization of that hit us pretty hard when we left the stadium and went back to the hotel. We had just won the series, but it felt like it didn't matter, because it was not enough. I felt like in a haze, I knew I should be happy about how well it all went, but all I could feel was disappointment. Even when Bronson came into the room telling me to turn on the TV, I didn't care. But he just yelled at me that we were through. I looked at him like he was mad. We had just been eliminated, but he pointed at the TV and they were showing a newscast about the Free Republics being disqualified. Something about the best third placed team advancing. It didn't even click that they were talking about us until Bronson shook me and I realized that we weren't done yet!

So now I stand up here and I'm looking down at the Fire Pit and I can't help but wonder if we really deserve this. And then suddenly I'm down on the grass. Blair is on second, Foster is on third. Sharpe throws and the ball just gets by my, I don't even move before I realize that the catcher has it and the umpire yells out "Strike!" I shake my head and close my eyes. I take a deep breath and the silence falls around me again. I turn my head towards Sharpe and again like in slow motion the ball comes in high, but somehow I know that it'd going to drop, so I just swing and it hit. I could hear the crack of the bat as something gave way, but I don't care, I just run. It goes right into right field and I get to first, Foster coming through. Unfortunately Billy and De'Andre strike out.

Then in the third inning I'm out in centre field. De'Andre doesn't get his changeup out right. Dufors hits and it comes my way. It is high, really high. Shit, that's a homer. No! It's coming down! Come on, run, legs, run! It's gonna hit the wall! Slow down, let it drop and then scoop it up. Oh crap, what the hell did it hit? Turn, JJ, turn! I pick up the ball and see Duplantier get hom. Dufors, the bugger, he's trying! Here goes. Oh shit that hurt! I roll and look at third! I got him! Unfortunately it was not enough. 8-2, harsh. And then game two 2-0.

The feeling is back. Do we even deserve to be here? But then I feel a hand on my shoulder. Coach McCrory, chewing on his cigar as usual. He must feel what I feel, because he tells me that getting this far is huge for us. Nobody had expected us to get even close to this. That Nova Anglicana is third in the world, they are one hell of a big deal in baseball and we're here. What do we have to lose? Nothing! And he's right. Even if we don't make a single hit, does it make what we achieved worth any less? Hell no. Everybody expects us to lose.

I turn my head and see that the rest of the team is standing behind me. I smile. I see that look on their face and I know that if we are going to go out, we'll go out with a bang. Nobody believed in us. We believe. We're the Devil's Rejects. I nod and bump fists. We can do this. We are ready."
--JJ Bernardetti

[Hapilopper]

McAllister Stadium, Putnam Lake, Newmanistan
The first round of the World Baseball Classic 49 Playoffs: Hapilopper v. South Newlandia
Well, the first game went quite well, and the Haps might have had to thank (or blame) a drunk idiot in the front row between home plate and first base. In the sixth inning of game one, a fan held up a giant cut-out of a roaring bear while Ryan Hunter was on the mound for the South Newlandia Elephants. At first, nobody paid the fool any mind. Certainly the Hapiloppians didn’t – they had seen much worse in baseball.

But then the fan brought out a megaphone and started roaring like a bear in the direction of poor Ryan Hunter. Why? To get under his skin. Earlier in the season, Hunter, pitching against the Golden Bears of Hampton Island, made the mistake of intentionally walking Midnight, Hampton Island’s resident power-hitting black bear, a strategy first seen and perfected by the Haps in the previous World Baseball Classic, even Midnight showed Hap first baseman Levi Berry a new kind of fear when on base. Midnight charged the mound, and was tranquilized before he could have done any serious damage.

So here was this idiot with a new and creative way of getting under the skin of an opposing team’s pitcher. Unfortunately for Ryan, it appears to have worked. He lost his command and the Haps scored five runs in the inning. With a runner on second, Jerome Hayden blasted a towering fly ball past the “359” marker in left-center field. The next batter, designated hitter Aaron Armstrong, hammered a liner to the gap in left field, and Leroy Hunnisett followed it up with another home run to right field.

But some Hapiloppians were not OK with what was going on. Levi Berry, standing on the rail on the dugout, looked over to see the heckler roaring out an awful song towards pitcher Ryan Hunter. He turned back towards the Hapiloppian coaching staff and started shouting at them to get this guy removed.

“This isn’t funny, can we take care of this?” Levi snapped. “I mean, that damn bear almost killed me last year and now we’re laughing at him nearly killing someone else? Christ!”

After the game ended, Levi told reporters that he still had nightmares from his encounter with Midnight the bear.

“It’s funny until that damn bear roars at you at the top of its lungs,” Levi said. “I feel sorry for Ryan and I hope he’s going to be OK. I just hope we don’t have another incident like that, because we’re better than that. I mean, yeah, I’m happy we got the win, but I’d rather get a win where we’re not hurting people in the process.”

On the other hand, other players, such as pitcher Curtis Skinner, called it “good old-fashioned bench jockeying.”

“If I had a dollar for every time I’ve been heckled by an opposing team or its fans, I’d have a few more dollars than I have right now,” said Curtis, the winning pitcher in game one. “I can’t begin to tell you how many players questioned my ancestry from the bench. I remember standing at first base one time when the Peoria first baseman talked about enjoying my wife. So, yeah, a roaring bear? No big deal.”

“What did you do when that first baseman talked about enjoying your wife?” a reporter from H-Sports asked Curtis.

“I think she moved to Peoria and married him,” Curtis said without missing a beat. “That was my second wife. But yeah, first time I faced him after they got married, I beaned him. Everyone knew why. He took my wife, so I gave him 99 to the face. I figure that was a fair trade.”

In game two, nothing went right for the Haps. They only got out four god damned hits while South Newlandia was very clearly in control, winning 5-0 and running Hot Sauce Gibbs off the mound after the bottom of the third inning when Igor White blasted one out of the park, bringing in Adam King and Shawn Zimmerman. It wasn’t Hot Sauce’s best game, as he appeared to have trouble with his command, throwing three wild pitches in the first three innings of the game. After the game ended, it was clear that he had been bothered by his poor performance, as he felt he hurt the team badly in the game.

In game three, the controversial spitballer Vic Foster would start for the Haps. Foster, who openly and freely doctored his pitches, had talked about using pig lard to coat the ball for his start. Some pundits in Hapilopper questioned if it was a good idea for the Hap Thrashers to include a spitballer in their rotation, especially when another team had been disqualified for sign-stealing.

According to Hapiloppian pundits, the optics looked bad for the Haps for the team to openly utilize someone that, in any other nation, would be considered a cheater. Vic wasn’t worried about it.

“I’ve still got to get the ball over the plate,” Vic said. “And the batter still has to hit it.”

In game four, rumors abounded over the Haps utilizing Martin Meadows, a designated emergency starter, to serve as an “opening” pitcher. Martin would pitch the first inning or two before turning over to Curtis Skinner, the game one pitcher, who would pitch a handful of innings afterward. Martin had been put in the rotation after Charlton Forest blew out his left arm late in the group phase. Charlton was resting back home in Kingsland, recovering from several surgeries on his arm that had been badly injured.

The Haps hoped they could take two straight from the Elephants, but they knew that doing so would be a tough task for them to do. The South Newlandia Elephants were a great team, as good as they had expected, as a matter of fact. But they’d have to be real good if they wanted to take the next two games.

[Banija]

Banija and Super Llamaland split first two games with 'everything left to play for' in the back half of the series


Banijan manager Ousman Kakay before Game 2 of the WBC Round of 16 series with Super Llamaland

LOUDON, NEWMANISTAN- Old versus new. That is how to define this series. The long-awaited return of one of the sport's ancient giants, Super Llamaland, to the World Baseball Classic. And then against Banija. We've been around for a long time, competing in basically every edition of this tournament since the early 40s. However, we have only recently found our golden generation that vaulted us to the top- the generation that has reached at least the quarterfinals of the World Baseball Classic for three consecutive tournaments, including winning it all in WBC 47 as we vaulted to the #1 ranking.

We don't have the history of Super Llamaland in this sport. They are the definition of old money- they expect success, because they've had success. They had success for many years before we even got to this tournament. And we expect success as well. But we're certainly the sport's 'new money'- we have reached the highest of highs, a title, but all of our success is recent. It makes for a fascinating clash- can one of the powers of old re-establish themselves on the world stage, defeat this new age power, and get the unranked side back to the quarterfinals in their first WBC in God knows how long? Or will the Banijans show Super Llamaland that success in the past is no guarantee of success in the present, and defeat this power as we try and solidify ourselves not just as a strong baseball nation now, but eventually reach the rank of blue blood status in this sport?

For two nations who have never faced each other, it does make for some interesting storylines. But that's all noise, if you think about it. It's all about what happens on the field. We'll jump directly to Game 2. After the Banijans wasted a strong opening start from their ace, Duta Condé, and lost in 11 innings in Game 1, we asked Suntukung Kandeh to take the mound in Game 2. We've been here before- you don't always get to win Game 1. But Suntukung Kandeh has never been in the position of a pressure packed playoff start before, for the national team. He used to be the #4 starter- he's pitched a few closeout games, but never when Banija desperately needed a big series win.

It was a lefty v. lefty matchup- Suntukung Kandeh dealing against Cedric Wei. The Banijans had to jump out early, to avoid going down 0-2 and putting themselves in an impossible situation. Fortunately for us, we were able to do so. While Mazzi struck out in the bottom of the first, it would be Momodou Joof, the new designated hitter this tournament, who would step up to the plate for the Banijans. After falling behind 3-0 in the count due to an extremely tight strike zone from the umpire, he was forced to throw a fastball over the heart of the plate. Joof had the green light, and he hit it 450 feet to straightaway center.

A towering shot, to make it 1-0 to the Banijans. And we weren't done. The veteran, Jonkong SIllah, who is always going to be a key part in this Banijan batting order, was able to do the same thing, taking care of Wei's early control issues. Wei went down 3-1 in the count, and had to throw a fastball to get a strike. He left it a little too much on the plate, and SIllah blasted it down the left field line, into the seats. Just like that, it was 2-0 for the Banijans. The fans going absolutely crazy. And providing enough momentum, and early support, for Kandeh to really let him dictate the pace of the game.

Banija's #2 starter wanted to go deep, after the bullpen was called upon the night before to go deep into the previous night's game, as that had gone 11 innings. While Super Llamaland tied the game in the top of the fifth, after a solo home run in the fourth made it 2-1, and a RBI double in the fifth made it 2-2, the Banijans were able to put good innings together with their bats afterwards, and score once each in the fifth and the sixth innings to make it 4-2. The next real point of contention was the seventh inning. Kandeh was once again on the mound, trying to get one more inning. Kandeh allowed a leadoff single to Derrick Armstrong. The pitching coach came out in this high leverage situation, and Kandeh stayed on the mound. He got Lily Scutaro to pop up.

But then, Huang singled. Now runners on 1st and second, with one out. The Designated Hitter, Kastner, up at the plate. The manager went to the mound. With two arms warming up in the pen, he decided to leave Kandeh on the mound- a mistake. On his 107th pitch of the night, Kandeh got too mcuh of the plate, and Kastner hit a sharp single to right field. ARmstrong scored from second, Huang went from first to third, and the score was now 4-3. With Slater up at the plate, Kakay called on veteran reliever Jebel Darboe to face him. And Darboe battled. A 9 pitch at-bat, with the hitter fouling off pitch after pitch. But Darboe kept after it. A ground ball, hit on one hop, to Mazzi. He flipped it to second, and the relay was made to first base. Darboe did his signature scream to the skies as he celebrated getting the team out of the jam.

Those would be Super Llamaland's last baserunners of the night. While Banija got an insurance run in the bottom of the 8th, Gibril Sowe had a perfect 1-2-3 8th inning, while Sarjo Touré struck out the side in the 9th inning, to give Banija it's first win of the knockout stages. Ousman Kakay was pumped. "Well, now it's a best of 3." He told reporters. "This was always going to be a great, competitive series, and now we have evidence of this. Great pitching by Kandeh, and our bullpen stepped up to the plate. Great pitching wins championships, and we intend to have our pitchers continue to step up."

Ensa Suso, in his fourth classic as a starter, will be having his first ever playoff start in Game 3. Usually a long reliever in the knockouts, he'll have a chance on the big stage from the first inning on. Fortunately, Super Llamaland uses a DH, so that won't be an issue. He'll face off against southpaw April Bendtner. If the Banijans win, then Ramata Kabba will become the first woman to ever start a playoff game for the Banijan national team, against projected starter Isaac Colón. But if we lose- then expect Ousman Kakay to do what he usually does, and rely on his bread and butter pitchers, with Duta Condé likely to pitch on three days rest in Game 4 if the Banijans are facing an elimination game.

No matter how you look at it, there are some dynamic pitching matchups left. Which team will be able to beat the other? Can either gain a decisive advantage, or will we have a do-or-die Game 5? We'll find out, in a few nights time, right here in Loudon.

[Super-Llamaland]

WBC49 RO16 GAME 1 LIVE BLOG
Tigers Look To Upset Banija in Return to WBC Playoffs
Annika Lindström, LBC Sports

LOUDON, Newmanistan -- Welcome to the Jungle! Tonight, Super-Llamaland’s hotly-anticipated return to the WBC playoffs is set to kick off against World #2 and heavy favorites Banija. Since the Tigers’ disappearance from the world stage, Banija has become one of the world’s leading baseball powerhouses, finishing third at WBC46 before winning it all just two years later.

Sofia Rasmussen’s “Cubs” had a mixed start to their first WBC back, going just 8-7 in their first fifteen games and quickly falling behind both The Sherpa Empire and Terre Septentionrale. But a late choke from the Nordiques against unfancied Devonta opened up an opportunity, and the surging Tigers, who won five of their final six series, managed to take the second qualifying spot from Group 8. Meanwhile, Banija had a much more leisurely road to Newmanistan, fending off a late challenge from Sarzonia to finish 21-9 in Group 2, six games ahead of third place.

Tonight’s pitching matchup sees ace against ace, as Genevieve Strauss takes on Duta Condé, the #3 starter on Banija’s WBC47 championship team. Additionally, there are no real surprises in either lineup, although Sofia Rasmussen has opted to move Noah Slater ahead of the struggling Gabriel Acosta in her lineup for tonight:

(12) Super-Llamaland: CF Lily Scutaro, SS Summer Huang, 2B Dominic Kastner, DH Noah Slater, 1B Gabriel Acosta, LF Tyson Long, 3B Miranda Gray, RF Liam Desjardins, C Derrick Armstrong

(5) Banija: SS Obasey Mazzi, DH Momodou Joof, RF Jonkong Sillah, 1B Yakuba Kah, LF Cyper Kandeh, 3B Jung Jassey, 2B Chii Uche, C Xaaf Geele, CF Bailo Suso

TOP 1, 0-0, no outs, bases empty: And we’re off! It’s the ace Duta Condé to face off against the top of Super-Llamaland’s lineup for the first inning. He fires a fastball outside to Lily Scutaro, who wisely lays the pitch off, and we’re on our way!

MID 1, 0-0: An incredibly quiet first inning for the Tigers. Scutaro struck out on five pitches before Huang and Kastner both hit well-struck ground balls directly to the capable Mazzi.

END 1, 0-0: Genevieve Strauss’ first at-bat didn’t go as well, as the Tigers ace walked Mazzi on five pitches. But she was seriously bailed out by her defense, as Lily Scutaro made an excellent play on Joof’s hard-hit line drive into left-center before Summer Huang made a diving stop to turn a double play.

MID 2, 0-0: Condé continues to demolish the Tigers’ bats. Slater and Acosta both strike out, and while Long nearly gives the Tigers their first hit of the day off of a hanging breaking ball, he falls feet short of muscling it over the left-field wall, as Kandeh makes an excellent running catch.

BOT 2, 0-0, runners on second and third, one out: Uh-oh. Strauss has made a real mess of things in the second inning as she continues to struggle with her control. While Kah struck out on a nasty-looking slider, Cyper Kandeh walked on just four pitches - all missing their spot by feet - and Jassey turned on a hanging slider and sent it over the left-field fence for a ground-rule double. Sofia Rasmussen is looking very nervous right now - can her ace get out of the jam?

END 2, 0-0: INCREDIBLE play from Liam Desjardins to save a run! Chiki Uche correctly anticipated Strauss’s first-pitch fastball and managed to send a fly ball into right field. However, Liam Desjardins not only made a solid catch, but also managed to gun down Kandeh as he tried to tag up and score, giving the defensive-minded midfielder a taste of his own medicine.

MID 3, 0-0: Meanwhile, Condé needs no such help to mow through the Tigers for a third straight inning. Gray is sat down on three straight swings and misses, last inning’s hero Desjardins grounds out weakly to third, and Derrick Armstrong becomes Condé’s fifth strikeout victim of the night.

END 3, 0-0: Strauss is, luckily for Llamanean fans worldwide, really settling into this game. Geele grounds out on two pitches, Suso flies out after three, and Obasey Mazzi barrels a line drive directly at Miranda Gray.

TOP 4, 0-0, runner on first, one out: Condé strikes out Scutaro for the second time for his sixth strikeout. But after falling behind 0-2, Summer Huang manages to battle Condé for six more pitches before finally drawing ball four on a fastball just out of the zone. The Tigers finally have their first baserunner, and Dominic Kastner has an opportunity to score the game’s first run.

TOP 4, 1-0, runner on second, one out: And he delivers! Condé falls behind 3-1 in the count, and when he tries to steal a strike with a fastball on the inside corner, Kastner manages to turn on it and hit a sharp line drive into the left-center gap. Cyper Kandeh does extremely well to field the ball off the wall and fire a perfect strike to the catcher Geele. But Summer Huang is just a second too fast, and slides in ahead of the tag to put the Tigers in front!

TOP 4, 2-0, runner on first, two outs: And after Condé recovers to induce a flyout from Slater (albeit one that moves Kastner to third), the formerly-struggling Gabriel Acosta manages to bloop a hit into right-center to score Kastner and give the Tigers a two-run lead!

MID 4, 2-0: Miranda Gray, who out of all the Tigers hitters arguably looks the most overmatched, strikes out helplessly to get Condé out of the inning. But there’s no denying that the Tigers have struck first.

BOT 4, 2-1, runner on second, no outs: But Banija gets one right back! Strauss’ control issues come back to haunt her as she loses Momodou Joof to a walk after going up 1-2 in the count. She then misses badly with a first-pitch changeup to the team’s MVP, Jonkong Sillah, who gets the Banija fans in attendance on their feet with a run-scoring double down the left-field line.

END 4, 2-1: Luckily, Strauss recovers to induce a flyout (Liam Desjardins’s arm perhaps keeping Sillah on second) and two strikeouts, thus escaping the inning with the lead preserved.

MID 5, 2-1: Unfortunately for her, Condé has recovered as well from the aberration of the fourth inning and coolly sits down the bottom of the Tigers’ order on eight pitches. After five innings, the Banijan ace has thrown just sixty-three pitches, indicating that he may be able to go deep in the game.

END 5, 2-1: Strauss gets through another inning unscathed, but her three strikeouts and three walks may indicate that she’s only done so due to the elite defense behind her. This inning, while seemingly perfect, is no exception. Uche hits a long fly ball into the glove of Scutaro, Geele hits a sharp ground ball up the middle and only Summer Huang’s supernatural instincts are able to turn into an out, and Suso lines out directly at Gabriel Acosta. Banija have perhaps been the unluckier side tonight, but I’m certainly not complaining.

MID 6, 2-1: Lily Scutaro hits a ground ball at Jung Jassey, who fumbles it just bad enough for the speedy center-fielder to beat the throw. What is it that they say about the leadoff man getting on? “Apparently it’s fine if you’re Banija” - Summer Huang strikes out before Jassey redeems himself by turning two off a ground ball hit by Dominic Kastner.

BOT 6, 2-1, runner on first, one out: After the speedy Joof becomes the fourth batter that Strauss walks, Sofia Rasmussen decides she’s seen enough. Apple Valley’s Evangeline Lu comes on in relief to deal with the threat.

END 6, 2-1: And deal with it, she does! Sillah strikes out (although Joof steals second on the play), as does Kandeh.

TOP 7, 2-1, runners on first and third, two outs: Condé has gotten himself in a bit of a jam here, as sharply-hit singles off the bats of Noah Slater and Miranda Gray have put runners on the corners with two outs. The left-handed Mamadi Corr will come in to face Desjardins. Sofia Rasmussen, with a perfectly good Ivy Werner on the bench, opts to keep Desjardins in.

MID 7, 2-1: Desjardins strikes out. Hopefully, that decision won’t come back to haunt us.

BOT 7, 2-2, bases empty, no outs: ...it has immediately come back to haunt us. Evangeline Lu’s first pitch to Jung Jassey is sent four hundred feet over the left-field fence to tie the game. Jassey has certainly been involved tonight, and his latest contribution has completely changed the game. Lu is out, replaced by Justin Frazier.

END 7, 2-2: Frazier strikes out the side on fourteen pitches to deafening applause from the Tigers fans at the Jungle.

MID 8, 2-2: Corr strikes out Derrick Armstrong before coming off, Banija skipper Ousman Kakay apparently believing Gibril Sowe to be a safer bet against the top of the Tigers’ lineup. He’s right - Scutaro and Huang both meekly ground out to end the inning.

END 8, 2-2: Frazier responds by confidently holding serve. Mazzi, Joof, and Sillah are fed a steady diet of sinkers from the Cyclones reliever, and they all respond by grounding out. Will the next inning decide Game One, or will we be heading to extras?

TOP 9, 2-2, runners on first and second, one out: It’s starting to look like the former! Sowe strikes out Kastner to get the first out, but Noah Slater comes through with a booming double to right-center. Sowe, mindful of the go-ahead run being in scoring position, is perhaps a bit too cautious with the slugging Gabriel Acosta and ends up walking him. Kakay decides to trust his setup man to get out of the jam on his own. Will he be right?

TOP 9, 2-2, runners on first and third, two outs: Incredible play from Obasey Mazzi to possibly save the game! Tyson Long swings at the first-pitch fastball and sends a sharply-hit ground ball up the middle. Luckily for Sowe, Mazzi makes a diving stop before flipping the ball to Chiki Uche to get the force, with only Long’s hustle saving the Tigers from an inning-ending double play.

MID 9, 2-2: Alas, Miranda Gray strikes out on three pitches, stranding two runners. If the Tigers want to win Game One, they’ll have to do so in extra innings.

BOT 9, 2-2, bases empty, one out: Sofia Rasmussen turns to southpaw Eliza Guo to get the first out of the ninth inning. Up against the slugging Yakuba Kah, she narrowly escapes after a 2-1 hanging slider is whipped inches foul over the wall. Guo recovers to strike Kah out, before being removed for the right-handed Niko Frandsen.

END 9, 2-2: Frandsen gets Kandeh to fly out to left and the seventh inning’s hero, Jung Jassey, to ground out to Miranda Gray at third. We’re going to extras! It’ll be a new reliever - likely Jebel Darfoe, to face the lefty Desjardins and the switch-hitting Armstrong. Why not a left-handed reliever, you ask? Well, Banija has only brought one - Corr, who was used to face Desjardins and Armstrong the last time they came up.

TOP 10, 2-2, runner on first, two outs: Luckily, the platoon advantage doesn’t exactly come back to haunt Banija, as Darfoe easily retires Desjardins and Armstrong. But Lily Scutaro lines a high fastball into center-field for the first hit of extra innings. Can the Tigers make something of this chance?

MID 10, 2-2: They cannot. Summer Huang swings on the first pitch (which was probably a little out of the zone) and lines it directly into the glove of Chiki Uche. It looks like Frandsen will be in for his second inning of work against the bottom of Banija’s lineup.

BOT 10, 2-2, runners on first and second, no outs: Uh oh. Now it’s time for Banija to threaten here in the tenth inning, as Uche - replaced by the pinch-runner Chee - and Geele both turn on first-pitch fastballs and send them into left field. Aman Teklu comes in to hit for the weak bat of Suso, and Rasmussen brings in the fireballing Calisto Gutierrez.

BOT 10, 2-2, runners on first and third, one out: Teklu can only muster a chopper toward second, but Kastner can’t quite get to the ball quickly enough, and can only get the force at second instead of a double play. The corner infielders come in, and Desjardins shades in to serve almost as a fifth infielder, as Rasmussen’s Tigers try to survive the threat.

BOT 10, 2-2, runners on first and third, two outs: The shift works! Mazzi chases a first-pitch changeup from Gutierrez and does well to bloop the ball into right field. But Liam Desjardins is able to get a jump on the ball and catch what surely would’ve been a bloop single without the shift. Not even the speedster Chee is willing to chance getting thrown out with Desjardins playing so shallowly, meaning Gutierrez is about to get out of the jam.

END 10, 2-2: They’ve survived! Momodou Joof makes contact, but it’s a fairly routine play for Huang, who ranges to her right to field the ground ball before firing to Acosta for the third and final out of the inning. We’re heading to the eleventh!

TOP 11, 2-2, runner on first, one out: Dominic Kastner singles to left with his first swing of the bat, getting the Tigers a baserunner before being taken out for a pinch-runner. Rosario. Darfoe recovers to strike out Slater before Banija turn to their flamethrowing closer, Sarjo Touré, to get them through the rest of the inning.

TOP 11, 2-2, runner on second, two outs: Gabriel Acosta looks overwhelmed by Touré’s triple-digits fastball and nasty breaking ball. He strikes out on three pitches - but the third pitch, a breaking ball buried in the dirt, gets past Geele, and Caitlin Rosario manages to run to second.

TOP 11, 3-2, runner on second, two outs: TYSON LONG DOUBLES TO LEFT - and the Tigers TAKE THE LEAD! Touré has nasty stuff when he’s on, but does have a tendency to hang his breaking ball - as he did here, on the third pitch to Tyson Long. Long turned on the pitch and whipped it down the left-field line, scoring Rosario easily and putting the Tigers back on top!

MID 11, 3-2: Miranda Gray flies out to end the inning, but the damage has been done.It’ll be Gutierrez again to try to shut the door on Banija’s hopes of a comeback in the bottom of the inning. Can she get it done?

BOT 11, 3-2, bases empty, one out: Gutierrez gets the Tigers fans roaring by striking out Sillah, perhaps Banija’s best hopes at fueling a comeback. Sofia Rasmussen decides to bring in Kennedy Schumacher to finish the game, perhaps noting that the power-hitting Yakuba Kah is left-handed and wanting to play the matchup game.

BOT 11, 3-2, bases empty, two outs: Schumacher sits down Kah on four pitches! The Jungle is really living up to its reputation now as the World #2’s last hope, Cyper Kandeh, comes up to the plate.

F/11, 3-2: Kandeh hits a fly ball to left, and Tyson Long, tonight’s hero, tracks it down! The Tigers have stunned the baseball community in their return to international play with an upset Game One victory of World #2 Banija!

[Delaclava]

DSGN.com Baseball

Clark goes big in small-ball seventh for Game 1 victory

Southport, NEW-- Owen Clark smacked a grand slam in the bottom of the seventh inning and the Delaclava national baseball team took advantage of another complete game performance from Bedin Egozhevy to win 4-2 over Sarzonia and take a 1-0 lead in the best-of-five series.

Clark's shot punished a tiring Mark Conroy and capped off a well-played inning in which the Phoenixes patiently worked to get runners in scoring position. By Clark's own admission, he wasn't even looking for the big bang.

"The guys in front of me did a fantastic job doing what they needed to do," Clark said. "I was nervous as hell though. There was one out and I knew if I played it wrong, it'd be a double play and another big opportunity wasted... I just thought, be patient, only make the swing if you can get the meat of the pitch. I just wanted to get it out of the infield and drive in the tying run.

"As it turned out, it was the perfect pitch to come through clutch."

On the other end of the ball, Egozhevy was coming off a shutout performance against HUElavia in a pivotal pitcher's duel which put the Phoenixes on the doorstep of playoff qualification. Manager Grady Collins opted to hold back the 20-year-old from his scheduled start in the Nagore series after they captured their playoff spot, including slotting the young left-hander to kick off the Round of 16 series. Egozhevy did not quite match his previous performance, but he performed admirably in his first playoff game, settling down after an erratic third inning that gave his opponents a 1-0 lead. After Clark's grand slam, Egozhevy was able to bring it home for the final two innings despite allowing a solo home run to pinch-hitter Luke Brinkley.

"Bedin was fantastic today," Collins said. "To come off a big performance like the one he had, then get called in to open the playoffs for a team who's never been here before. He was big time. It's all we could have asked of him today - if we couldn't get enough runs to win, we definitely wouldn't deserve this one."

For a while, it seemed that Delaclava wouldn't figure out a way to score. Through six innings, they trailed 1-0 despite outhitting their opponents 8-4. They continued to leave men on base, including squandering a bases-loaded situation when clean-up hitter Josh Smith grounded into a double play in the third inning.

According to several team members, it was Egozhevy's performance that buoyed the team and inspired them to find a way on the board.

"We weren't going to make him carry the team again," captain and third baseman Yames Rivas said. "No way. When he kept getting stronger through the middle innings, we decided, no, we have to figure this out."

In the end, it was Rivas himself who set the wheels in motion, working the count against Conroy and continuing to survive with two strikes. Eleven pitches later, Rivas was headed to first base on a full-count. The next hitter, Smith, was intent on being more cautious with this plate appearance, and jumped ahead 2-0 in the count with the second pitch nearly hitting him on the elbow. With what appeared to be some encouragement and advising from his team, Smith stayed in the box on the next pitch as the fading Conroy hit him on the elbow. Despite the protestations of the Sarzonian bench, the Phoenixes had two men on base.

Asked specifically about the moment after the game, Smith opined, "The batter's box is my spot. It's not my problem if the pitcher can't keep it out of there."

Wanting for some speed on the bases, Collins opted to remove catcher Edy Franco and put in 17-year-old substitute outfielder Nollum Elur. Elur played his role to perfection, slapping a well-placed drag single and speeding almost all the way down the line before the ball even reached Ian Danielson.

With bases now loaded, Sarzonia manager Geoff Yancey stayed in the dugout, leaving Conroy to take on Clark. The 23-year-old left fielder got a hold of a tame fastball and sent it 430 feet over the left field wall and into the sell-out crowd of 60,000 at Keisler Stadium.

"We ended it with a big shot," Rivas analysed, "but that was perfect small ball. All the bits of advice you hear as a kid - work the count, hit it where they ain't - we take that to heart every single inning. That's why we're so good, that's why we're dangerous, because we never get away from those fundamentals. We have a team of studs, but the tactics precedes talents or egos.

"Teams can see it coming, but there's no way to stop it."

The Phoenixes will certainly hope they can keep their efficient, effective offense rolling alone. On the mound, 22-year-old righty Rhys Hackett takes on Jeff Parrish for Game 2. The rotation was adjusted as Delaclava clinched their playoff spot immediately after Ryan Dausch's last start, allowing Collins to rest Hackett and Egozhevy and instead start Bill Timmons and a relief corps led by Cam McGrath for the final two games against Nagore. Dausch will start Game 3, while Egozhevy returns for Game 4 and Hackett back for Game 5, if necessary - and this squad doesn't seem to think it will be.

"The analysts did a lot of work about this series on paper, but we're the better team on the grass and dirt," Rivas proclaimed. "Sarzonia is too good to count out, for sure, but we're going to take care of business, the way a higher seed does."

Round of 16 Matchups
Game 3: Ryan Dausch vs. Jamie Pearson
Game 4: Bedin Egozhevy vs. TBD
Game 5*: Rhys Hackett vs. TBD

[Newmanistan]

(1) Cassadaigua vs (16) TJUN-ia @ Emperor Michael I Stadium, Pocono City
Game 3:

Cassadaigua                  0 0 2 2 2 0 1 1 3 11
TJUN-ia                      2 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0  3

Cassadaigua wins series, 3-0

(8) Delaclava vs (9) Sarzonia @ Keisler Stadium, Southport
Game 3:

Delaclava                    0 0 0 0 0 3 0 0 0  3
Sarzonia                     0 1 0 3 0 1 0 0 X  5

Game 4:

Delaclava                    1 0 1 2 0 0 5 0 2 11
Sarzonia                     0 0 0 0 2 0 0 0 0  2

Series tied 2-2

(5) Banija vs (12) Super-Llamaland @ The Jungle, Loudon
Game 3:

Banija                       3 0 0 0 1 2 0 1 4 11
Super-Llamaland              0 0 1 0 2 0 0 1 0  4

Game 4:

Banija                       2 0 0 0 1 0 5 0 0  8
Super-Llamaland              0 0 0 5 0 0 0 0 0  5

Banija wins series, 3-1

(4) The Sherpa Empire vs (13) Royal Kingdom of Quebec @ Gladiator Stadium, Olympia
Game 3:

The Sherpa Empire            0 6 0 2 2 0 0 0 1 11
Royal Kingdom of Quebec      0 3 0 1 0 1 0 0 0  5

Game 4:

The Sherpa Empire            0 0 0 0 0 3 0 0 2 4  9
Royal Kingdom of Quebec      0 0 0 1 2 0 0 2 0 0  5

The Sherpa Empire wins series, 3-1

(6) South Newlandia vs (11) Hapilopper @ McAllister Stadium, Putnam Lake
Game 3:

South Newlandia              0 0 0 0 0 0 1 2 0  3
Hapilopper                   0 4 0 0 0 0 0 3 X  7

Game 4:

South Newlandia              0 0 0 1 0 1 0 2 0  4
Hapilopper                   0 1 0 0 0 0 2 0 0  3

Series tied, 2-2

(3) Newmanistan vs (14) Northwest Kalactin @ Tundra Falls Proving Grounds, Tundra Falls (scorinated by Chromatika)
Game 3:

Newmanistan                  0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 2  3
Northwest Kalactin           0 0 0 0 1 1 0 0 0  2

Game 4:

Newmanistan                  2 0 0 0 2 0 0 0 0  4
Northwest Kalactin           1 1 1 0 1 0 1 0 X  5

Series tied, 2-2

(7) Ko-oren vs (10) Hampton Island @ Empress Jessica I Stadium, Jessicaville
Game 3:

Ko-oren                      0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0  0
Hampton Island               0 3 0 0 0 0 3 4 X 10

Game 4:

Ko-oren                      0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0  1
Hampton Island               0 5 3 0 0 0 0 0 X  8

Series tied, 2-2

(2) Nova Anglicana vs (15) Tikariot @ The Fire Pit, Centralia
Game 3:

Nova Anglicana               0 1 0 1 0 0 0 0 0  2
Tikariot                     0 0 1 0 4 0 0 0 X  5

Game 4:

Nova Anglicana               0 2 1 0 1 0 0 0 0  4
Tikariot                     0 0 0 1 0 0 2 0 0  3

Nova Anglicana wins series, 3-1

[Sarzonia]

Jamie Pearson started the World Baseball Classic as a man who might be in a better team's bullpen for a knockout round, but Sarzonia sent him to the mound in a pivotal Game 3 against Delaclava hoping to reward manager Geoff Yancey's faith in him.

Pearson did his job, holding the Phoenixes scoreless for five en route to a 5 2/3 inning, three run effort to give the Stars a 5-3 victory and a two-games-to-one series lead in the best-of-five series.

Designated hitter Luke Brinkley helped Pearson tremendously, even though he went 0-for-3. He drew a two-out walk in the bottom of the fourth to put two on for rightfielder Kenny Evans. Phoenixes starting pitcher Ryan Dausch seemed to be reluctant to load the bases for first baseman Cody Frazier after he homered in the bottom of the second and lashed two drives foul.

Evans got hold of a hanging curve and blasted the ball well over the left field wall to put the Stars up 4-0. The Phoenixes rallied in the top of the sixth to cut the lead to one, but Frazier doubled home Brinkley in the bottom of the frame to make Pearson a winner.

Uriel Jimenez tossed two shutout innings before Yancey handed the ball to closer Tyrell Douglass. He struck out the side on 14 pitches to notch his first save of the knockout rounds and put the Stars on the brink of qualifying for a date with top seeded and No. 1 overall Cassadaigua.

Yancey stuck with his plan and started Brian Lynch in Game 4, hoping to save ace Mark Conroy and arguably Sarzonia's best pitcher Jeff Parrish for Cassadaigua. However, Yancey watched Lynch cough up four runs in four innings, well aware that Phoenix hitters lashed hard hit balls right at Stars fielders to prevent further damage.

Dima Ostrelov pitched two innings in relief before Yancey sent out fellow long reliever Alfred Wagner in the seventh. He allowed five runs in one third of an inning before Yancey sent Carnie Weston to stop the bleeding. She did her part for 1 2/3 innings, but Myron Daniels gave up a two-run jack to designated hitter Galén Roig that punctuated a complete disaster for the Stars.

To add further injury to insult, Frazier was helped off the field after a wayward fastball by starter Bedin Egozhevy in the sixth beaned him, forcing Brinkley to don a first baseman's mitt and Sarzonia to lose the designated hitter. Frazier was fine after the game, but Yancey said Brinkley would start Game 5 at first base.

"The good thing is it gets his bat in the lineup, but we lose Cody's glove," Yancey said.

By now, Yancey is well aware that his team is now 0-3 in potential series clinching games, but he said he was still going with his intended plan to start Conroy. He added that if the Stars somehow advance to face Cassadaigua, who completed a three-game sweep of TJUN-ia, Parrish would start the first game of that series. Everyone else is available to pitch, he said.

"If we don't win, we'll have months to rest," he said. "It's all hands on deck now."

[Northwest Kalactin]

After experimenting with Baseinator, I can confirm I am comfortable with the program, and I am interested in co-bidding with a senior bidder for WBC. Please, if you are interested, do not hesitate to contact me if you are also interested.

NWK-PSR Super Series
8 Teams-2 Nations-1 Week-1 Champion
Linescores

:

Team Name   1  2  3  4  5  6  7  8  9 Total
Gold Coast  0  0  1  1  2  2  4  4  1   15
Chsava      2  1  0  3  1  3  1  1  1   13

Team Name      1  2  3  4  5  6  7  8  9 Total
Coffs Harbour  2  2  0  1  0  1  2  1  0   9
Vokomitov      2  2  2  1  0  2  0  1  X   10

Team Name  1  2  3  4  5  6  7  8  9 Total
Kempsey    1  2  0  0  2  1  0  0  0   6
Entland    0  0  0  0  0  1  0  1  0   2

Team Name  1  2  3  4  5  6  7  8  9 Total
Ballina    1  1  2  0  1  1  1  2  0   9
Lutka      0  0  1  1  2  1  3  3  X   11

Team Name      1  2  3  4  5  6  7  8  9 Total
Gold Coast     0  1  0  0  0  3  1  1  2   8
Coffs Harbour  1  1  0  2  2  1  5  0  X   12

Team Name  1  2  3  4  5  6  7  8  9 10 Total
Vokomitov  1  0  4  1  1  1  1  2  1  0   12
Kempsey    2  1  3  0  1  0  1  0  4  1   13

Team Name  1  2  3  4  5  6  7  8  9 Total
Entland    0  0  3  1  1  1  1  1  1   9
Ballina    2  3  1  0  0  1  0  0  1   8

Team Name  1  2  3  4  5  6  7  8  9 Total
Lutka      1  1  0  1  0  0  1  2  1   7
Chsava     0  2  0  1  4  2  1  1  X   11

Team Name   1  2  3  4  5  6  7  8  9 Total
Kempsey     2  0  1  0  0  4  0  0  0   7
Gold Coast  1  2  2  1  0  0  2  0  X   8

Team Name      1  2  3  4  5  6  7  8  9 Total
Chsava         1  0  0  3  0  0  1  3  0   8
Coffs Harbour  2  0  1  1  1  1  1  2  X   9

Team Name  1  2  3  4  5  6  7  8  9 Total
Ballina    3  2  1  0  1  3  1  2  1   14
Vokomitov  1  1  2  3  0  2  1  0  0   10

Team Name  1  2  3  4  5  6  7  8  9 Total
Lutka      2  1  1  2  1  3  0  2  5   17
Entland    1  0  3  0  0  5  1  0  1   11

Team Name   1  2  3  4  5  6  7  8  9 Total
Gold Coast  2  1  1  0  0  0  0  1  2   7
Ballina     0  3  0  1  1  2  1  1  X   9

Team Name      1  2  3  4  5  6  7  8  9 Total
Coffs Harbour  3  1  0  0  0  0  1  2  0   7
Kempsey        0  0  0  0  2  0  0  1  0   3

Team Name  1  2  3  4  5  6  7  8  9 Total
Vokomitov  2  1  0  1  1  0  0  1  2   8
Lutka      0  2  0  0  0  0  0  1  2   5

Team Name  1  2  3  4  5  6  7  8  9 Total
Chsava     0  0  0  2  0  0  0  0  0   2
Entland    1  0  1  0  0  0  2  0  X   4

Team Name   1  2  3  4  5  6  7  8  9 Total
Lutka       1  2  0  1  1  2  2  3  1   13
Gold Coast  2  0  1  2  0  1  0  1  1   8

Team Name      1  2  3  4  5  6  7  8  9 Total
Ballina        1  2  0  0  1  1  0  2  2   9
Coffs Harbour  2  0  0  3  3  0  1  2  X   11

Team Name  1  2  3  4  5  6  7  8  9 Total
Kempsey    3  1  2  2  0  0  5  0  2   15
Chsava     2  0  1  1  0  2  1  1  2   10

Team Name  1  2  3  4  5  6  7  8  9 Total
Entland    0  3  1  0  1  2  3  2  0   12
Vokomitov  0  1  1  0  0  1  0  2  1   6

Team Name   1  2  3  4  5  6  7  8  9 Total
Gold Coast  1  0  2  1  0  2  1  1  1   9
Entland     1  0  0  3  2  1  1  2  X   10

Team Name      1  2  3  4  5  6  7  8  9 10 Total
Coffs Harbour  0  1  1  6  0  0  0  0  2  0   10
Lutka          1  0  1  1  3  2  0  1  1  1   11

Team Name  1  2  3  4  5  6  7  8  9 Total
Kempsey    1  0  1  0  2  1  1  1  1   8
Ballina    1  1  0  2  0  5  0  1  X   10

Team Name  1  2  3  4  5  6  7  8  9 Total
Vokomitov  1  0  1  0  0  1  1  1  1   6
Chsava     1  0  1  1  0  0  1  3  X   7

Team Name   1  2  3  4  5  6  7  8  9 Total
Vokomitov   1  1  2  0  0  2  2  0  1   9
Gold Coast  0  0  1  1  4  3  1  2  X   12

Team Name      1  2  3  4  5  6  7  8  9 Total
Entland        1  2  1  1  1  1  1  4  0   12
Coffs Harbour  2  1  1  0  0  2  1  2  1   10

Team Name  1  2  3  4  5  6  7  8  9 Total
Lutka      0  2  3  0  0  0  0  4  3   12
Kempsey    2  1  1  1  3  0  2  1  2   13

Team Name  1  2  3  4  5  6  7  8  9 10 Total
Chsava     3  1  1  0  0  2  2  1  1  1   12
Ballina    1  1  0  0  2  3  2  1  1  0   11

G W L RF RA  RD Win Pct.
1       Entland 7 5 2 60 58  +2 0.714
2         Lutka 7 4 3 76 70  +6 0.571
3 Coffs Harbour 7 4 3 68 61  +7 0.571
4       Kempsey 7 4 3 65 61  +4 0.571
5       Ballina 7 3 4 70 68  +2 0.429
6    Gold Coast 7 3 4 67 73  -6 0.429
7        Chsava 7 3 4 63 67  -4 0.429
8     Vokomitov 7 2 5 61 72 -11 0.286

Congrats to Èntland on the first ever Super Series win!
8 Teams from Northwest Kalactin and the Pripet Socialist Republic gathered in Gold Coast, the capital of NWK to play a bit of baseball. This was much in preparation for the start of the Kalactanian baseball league, which will be starting up near the start of WBC 50. The Kalactanian Sporting Commision is so impressed by the operational and popularity success of the series, that a WBC 50 is rumored to be in the works, however the co-bidding nation has not been announced yet. Èntland was by far the best team in the high scoring series, putting up a 5-2 record, which would go on and eclipse those of all other 7 competitors.

[South Newlandia]

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The full distance it is

South Newlandia split two more games with the Thrashers, tying the series at two wins each. A deciding fifth game will now be necessary, where the two teams will fight for the quarterfinal spot. This time, there was finally a close game involved, with the Elephants barely coming away with victory.

South Newlandia              0 0 0 0 0 0 1 2 0  3
Hapilopper                   0 4 0 0 0 0 0 3 X  7

The first game was pitched by Larry Cain for South Newlandia, while Vic Foster was on the mount for the Thrashers. Forster ended up being a problem for the South Newlandian batters, just like Curtis Skinner in game 1. The bigger problem, though, was Larry Cain once again giving up many runs really early. After two innings, Hapilopper was ahead 4-0, and Damian Bolton was shaking his head in disbelief. He knew game three was lost at that point. From experience, he knew that Cain would now get stronger, and decided to let him keep pitching. But he also knew that the difference of four runs would make it almost impossible for the South Newlandians to catch up. When Marcel Adams came into the game after six innings, South Newlandia had not given up any further runs, but they hadn’t scored any either. Not even Fabio Ventura was able to score any runs here, and Cain proved to be a terrible batter, striking out on each of his attempts. That’s also why you use a Designated Hitter, but that’s another story. The seventh finally saw South Newlandia getting a first run, scored by Adam King, and in the top of the eighth, they got two more thanks to Ian Pearce and Fabio Ventura. With the game now open again, only 3-4, Marcel Adams committed the error that cost them any last chance to turn the game around. He gave up three runs in the bottom of the eighth after a home run, ending game three.

South Newlandia              0 0 0 1 0 1 0 2 0  4
Hapilopper                   0 1 0 0 0 0 2 0 0  3

South Newlandia was now behind 1-2, and they would have to win each of the two remaining games. Jay Kramer would be on the mount now, the other of the South Newlandian pitchers that had been without defeat so far. The 2nd inning also was problematic for him, but he at least managed to only give up one run. Still, at that rate, this would be their last match of WBC49. The fourth saw Shawn Zimmerman scoring the equalizer for South Newlandia, and in the sixth, they pulled ahead thanks to a run scored by David Drum. Jay Kramer, the 19-year-old pitcher, decided to go for a seventh inning, and South Newlandia had to pay for that after the Thrashers scored two runs here, once again taking the lead. Barnaby Butt came in to close after the seventh, but if the Elephants couldn’t find a run soon, they would be eliminated from this tournament. Fortunately for them, Ian Pearce and Fabio Ventura scored two runs in the eighth, giving South Newlandia the lead back. The lead remained close, and Barnaby Butt had choked multiple close games in both the IBS and the WBC so far. He would need to pitch his best. After two scoreless half-innings, the bottom of the ninth rolled around. The Thrashers were just one run behind, but they would have to score on demand. After a strikeout, a walk and a single, Butt was under a fair bit of pressure. He retired the next batter, but the fifth one managed to hit the ball well into the direction of Centerfield. The Elephants could only thank the fantastic reflexes of Igor White, who somehow managed to catch the ball out of the air to give South Newlandia the victory, and another chance in the fifth game.
Blake Robbins will be the starting pitcher for South Newlandia in the last game. While he is among the more experienced pitchers, he wasn’t necessarily among the better ones up to this point. The closer for this game would most likely be Fabio Paul, and a lot of weight will be on his shoulders. This is the last game, for all, or at least a lot of marbles. No side can afford a bad game anymore. In the IBS, we have seen the South Newlandian team struggling with deciders, as they lost both of them, but we certainly hope that the senior team can improve this record.

All matches

(1) Cassadaigua 3-0 TJUN-ia (43) (7-6, 9-6, 11-3)
(UR) Delaclava 2-2 Sarzonia (28) (4-2, 2-5, 3-5, 11-2)
(6) The Sherpa Empire 3-1 Royal Kingdom of Quebec (32) (3-4, 7-6, 11-5, 9-5)
(2) Banija 3-1 Super-Llamaland (UR) (2-3, 5-3, 11-4, 8-5)
(3) Nova Anglicana 3-1 Tikariot (UR) (8-2, 1-0, 2-5, 4-3)
(4) Ko-oren 2-2 Hampton Island (8) (5-2, 8-6, 0-10, 1-8)
(5) Newmanistan 2-2 Northwest Kalactin (37) (7-3, 1-6, 3-2, 4-5)
(31) South Newlandia 2-2 Hapilopper (15) (2-8, 5-0, 3-7, 4-3)

Four of the top six teams have already secured their advancement, all of them group winners. We say goodbye to the unranked teams from Super-Llamaland and Tikariot, each putting up great fights against much stronger opponents, and to The Royal Kingdom of Quebec and TJUN-ia, teams that weren’t unranked, but also put a big fight against much better teams. Congratulations to Cassadiagua, The Sherpa Empire, Banija and Nova Anglicana, although none of these teams should be surprised by their advancement into the quarterfinals. Four matchups, including the one of the Elephants, will require a fifth and deciding match. We wish all teams good luck, but eight will be four tomorrow, completing the quarterfinal schedule.

(1) Cassadaigua vs. (DEL-SRZ)
(6) The Sherpa Empire vs. (2) Banija
(3) Nova Anglicana vs. (KOR-HAM)
(NEW-NWK) vs. (SNL-HAP)

(OOC: Slightly short today, but I’m busy the whole day)