World Baseball Classic 50- Everything (IC)

by **TJUN-ia** » Mon Nov 23, 2020 10:54 am

Game 3 - TJUN-ia (22) 3-5 West Phoenicia (40) (TJU lead series 2-1)
Gene Almac would start the 3rd game against the Confederates of West Phoenicia with one aim in mind: completing the sweep. The first two games were a demolition many back in TJUN-ia had never seen before as the Battin' Jags won by a combined score of 22-1. It was fun for us, not so for any Confederate fans, but Phillip Hellas-Verona knew better. He knew that in the world of baseball, anything can happen in a do-or-die scenario and that was what exactly happened here in New Lakeland.

After all this time, the Confederates finally figured out how to counter the Battin' Jags: fast baseball. They got on the board first and never looked back, with a 2-run bomb by Kevin Dances in the first and another by Jack Navy in the 3rd the main points in a 5-run first third for the Confederates. TJUN-ia got a 2-run bomb themselves before the 2nd of West Phoenicia's, Joe Gregory bringing some joy to the fans at this point, but it wasn't enough to save Almac from being brought off the mound for F. G. Greenwood's first postseason appearance. He would pitch a perfect game the rest of the way, keeping the Confederates at 5, but it was futile in the face of Carmen Nguyen, who had only two real blemishes the entire game: that Gergory 2-run bomb in the 3rd and another homer in the 8th, Greenwood himself getting TJUN-ia's 3rd. It was West Phoenicia's night and the sweep was dead by 5 runs to 3 - we would be heading to a Game 4.

Game 4 - TJUN-ia (22) 1-0 West Phoenicia (40) (TJU wins series 3-1)
So yes, Game 4 was here and Jose Almas had the job of avoiding the worst fate to befall a team in this part of the tournament - a winner-take-all Game 5. Game 5s and Game 7s are some of the most stressful events in all of sports and for TJUN-ia to be subjected to one would be painful to many. Unfortunately, Margaret decided to allow us to view what a Game 5 might look like in Game 4 as this one was a tight one. The game was all about the duel between Almas and his opposite number in Ashwyn Sid as they treaded exceptional pitching between the two of them. Neither batting line up could do anything about them for most of the game and it was a miracle that some even made it to first base. It looked like no one would break any time soon and extra was on the horizon...and then came the 8th.

Pedro Moires may have scored the most important home run in the history of TJUN-ian baseball and he didn't even mean it. With 1 out already, he was supposed to either force a walk or just try to delay the game with mind games but he hit the ball anyway and that one went out of the park. He looked a bit shock as we walked over home plate, but the bench was in absolute party mode. The celebrations got so wacky that Angel Enrique kissed him on the cheek, and that was certainly a shock to many watching this live! Almas would complete the game and history had been made: TJUN-ia had won a playoff series for the first time in their history and the celebrations were certainly wild. The main image that would be relayed back home was of the new lovers of Enrique and Moires, the former carrying the latter off the field to the applause of the crowd. Ko-oren awaits us now, but the first steps were complete: we had won a playoff game and a playoff series. Now, let's see how far this road goes...

Round of 32 Series: vs West Phoenicia (40/15-15 in Group 3) (@New Lakeland Business School Stadium, New Lakeland)
Game 1: W 14-0 (1-0)
Game 2: W 8-1 (2-0)
Game 3: L 3-5 (2-1)
Game 4: W 1-0 (3-1)
~~Game 5:~~

TJUN-ia wins series 3-1

Round of 16 Series: vs Ko-oren (6/21-9 in Group 1) (Venue TBC)
Game 1:
Game 2:
Game 3:
Game 4:
Game 5:

Starting Pitchers: Chris Harris (Game 1), Davis Johnson (Game 2)

by **Kriegiersien** » Mon Nov 23, 2020 1:11 pm

A cellar somewhere.

One man is sitting in a chair, two broad-shouldered man standing behind him, one older man stroking a baseball bat in his hand, going back and forth.

“So Luigi, I gave you a hundred thousand bucks to convince some of the key players from Cassadaigua to make some mistakes in the match against Kriegiersien and what happened?”, he adressed the sitting man.

“I think it was a good idea”, said Luigi.
“What happened?”, asked the man with the bat again, raising the chin of Luigi with it.
“I betted all of it at the first three games. A win for Kriegiersien. Of course I will give you a share of the wins I made. Except from the second match, that money is gone.”
“So you bribed no player and used the money to bet on Kriegiersien?”
“Brilliant, right? I mean, there was no chance that with that few money I could have convinced even one player. Probably I would have been arrested or worse. And then the money would have been gone. So, we made a win.”
“We? My money, that I gave you, made little money. And all the money I invested in a 3-0 for Kriegiersien is gone. That is a big loss. Beside it looked like you wanted to vanish with the money you won.”

He pat his baseball bat again.

“Oh no, I was on the way to you.”
“With tickets to Newmanistan in your pockets?”
“For a holiday after I had given you your share.”
“How nice of you. Of course there is the problem that you didn’t do what I told you, for that I will keep all the money you won.”
“Sounds fair.”
“And I lost much money because you didn’t even try to bribe them…”
“I tell you, it hadn’t worked. They are just too famous, rich and patriotic for that.”
“Ah, you are just such a funny, creative guy.”

He pinched the cheeks of Luigi.

“For that I have a new job for you.”
“Really?”
“Yes. I’ll make you the next president of the Kriegiersien Baseball Association.”
“Mercy please.”

by **Chromatika** » Mon Nov 23, 2020 1:27 pm

How?

Why?

Hilary. Angelou.

After pitching a complete game victory for the Amateurs in Game 1 of the series against Zwangzug, the Corsairs Ace added another complete game victory in a do-or-die situation in Game 4 of the series as Chromatika prevailed 5-1 to push the series to a fifth and final game in the Round of 32 of the 50th World Baseball Classic.

Angelou has been responsible for both Chromatik victories in the series, and added a marquee performance of conceding four hits and one run in the outing.

"It is simply too bad she can't pitch Game 5," admitted one Chromatik pundit, "Nobody is pitching as well as she is right now."

She has done all she can to get the Amateurs on the brink of a ridiculous upset. Can they get over the line?

Maybe she can relieve for an inning?

by **South Newlandia** » Mon Nov 23, 2020 1:53 pm

Larry Cain was not generally regarded as the best South Newlandian pitcher, but he had caught one of his best days against the Tigers. In his group stage games, he delivered mostly solid peformances, but the Tigers seemingly just couldn’t get to him. On the other side, April Bendtner gave the Elephants just as much trouble. After six innings, the scoreboard read just 1-0 in favour of the Elephants, thanks to Shawn Zimmerman scoring after a double into centre field for Igor White. Cain had only faced 21 batters up to this point, and looked like he could continue. On the other side, Bendtner got pulled, and had to watch from the bench as his bullpen blew up the game. The top of the seventh saw the Elephants pulling ahead 3-0 with runs by Larsen and Ventura, and they added another run on top in the eighth when Gregor Garner got a rare run. The top of the ninth saw the Elephants getting even more runs, with Adam King sending the ball into the stands for a three-run homer. Larry Cain was allowed to end his day now, and Marcel Adams managed to not give up 7 in the bottom of the ninth. With that, the Elephants had regained the series lead. They were just a single victory away from advancing to the Round of 16, and Sansara opted to leave Jacob Conroy waiting. Blake Robbins would get the ball in game four.
Heading into the bottom of the second, the game was still tied at zero. Llamanean starter Cedric Wei had made easy work of the first six batters, while Robbins was already in deep trouble. He had runners on the corners with only one out, after a walk to Noah Slater, and allowing a base hit to Tyson Long that Slater was able to stretch to third base. At least he’d gotten Emery Wu out, but Liam Desjardins was up next. The Left Fielder and Robbins worked up to a 3-2 count, and Robbins next throw was just outside the batter’s box. The walk loaded the bases for the Tigers. Derrick Armstrong struck out, but the strongest part of the Llamanean line-up was approaching. One more out, and Robbins would engineer the Elephants out of trouble. Lily Scutaro was up next, and she hit a nice quick hit into Centre Field. Zimmerman couldn’t get to it fast enough, allowing the score for Slater and keeping the bases loaded. Summer Huang was up next, and she made contact on a 3-0 pitch. The ball went down the third-base line for a double. Tigers three, Elephants nothing. Miranda Gray was going to be next, and Robbins still needed an out. Her hit went towards Left Field, driving the next two runs home. Once again, Bolton had to decide if he wanted to leave his starter on the mound, but he opted to do that. Miller had just pitched a ton of pitches two games ago, and it didn’t really make sense to burn the bullpen in a game that was probably gone anyway. His decision paid off, at least a little bit, when Gabriel Acosta struck out. Still, the game seemed like it was gone. Lily Scutaro added a run in the fourth, and the Elephants were down by six. At least Robbins was finally putting out good pitches, and the stream of Llamanean runs slowed down.
Remarkably, the Elephants didn’t give themselves up. King and Ventura got the Elephants on the board to narrow the deficit to four, and runs for Dunlop, Larsen and Ventura in the seventh narrowed the game down to just one run. Barnaby Butt came in to close the game in the seventh, and he managed to keep it to one run difference after seven. Going into the top of the ninth, the Elephants were still trailing by one run, 5-6. Now was the time to make a massive comeback, the Elephants could take the series here from a 6-run deficit. Three strikeouts in a row ended the game instead.
With the series tied at two, the series will go into a deciding fifth game. Fortunately for the Elephants and Damian Bolton, Jacob Conroy has not pitched yet in the knockouts, and the South Newlandian ace is able to go into this extremely important game well-rested. Regardless, it is going to be a very difficult match. Tigers versus Elephants: Who will prevail?

by **Zwangzug** » Mon Nov 23, 2020 3:13 pm

Zwangzug's e-Lipogram

Zwangzug's first playoff round against Chromatika's Non-Pros will go to a fifth clash in Cassadaigua. DuPont of Bassabook got a win in its midpoint showdown, or third matchup, pitching six innings and--my boss says pitching wins is not a good stat, okay, DuPont struck out six with only two walks. Sadly, our capital's Ross-Singh would not do that strongly, as Corsair star Hilary got through all innings again. All of us think, wishfully, that this outing was far too tiring to do again any day soon.

You might ask why Zwangzug is still using a full rotation and not skipping to a short cyclic list for playoff sports, or going old-school with a full staff of guys who can start and not just do short-duration stints. I also did ask this, to Coach Liu, who sadly would not play along and say anything lipogrammatic.

Happily, backup shortstop Abigail Noonan was around for paraphrasing. "I think comfort and familiarity is important, and that's why a coach might not want to switch arms. Obviously a group format such as this, playing six occasions against group opposition and having DuPont start all six against Maklohi Vai, say, won't work now that it's 'third win will go on, third loss will stop.' But our rhythm is still intact and I know all of us can do our job tomorrow."

"It wasn't much of a workout for Chromatika's backup pitching corps," said Xiaodong Jia, plus or minus. "Isaac had to mop up, Todd...who knows what Todd is doing at this point. But if Liu calls tomorrow, I'm raring to go."

"I was planning to risk a small amount of cash on matchups not involving our squad," said Lincoln Small. "How many quality starts will Banija obtain, how many balls will Tikariot foul off, how many of us will go dizzy staring at Chromatika's flag...fun stuff. Sadly Coach Liu won't allow this, notwithstanding that Zwangzug laws don't apply in Cassadaigua."

"Our group wasn't that hard," said Aaron Grant-Mond, "but as far as playoffs go, past form is important too. And though our nation and its sports traditions go back a long way, this particular squad is young. If you want to jump on our bandwagon, know that lots of nations--Nova Anglicana, Drawkland, Banija, Hampton Island--took part just two Classics ago, but Zwangzug did not. So you shouldn't--oh, who am I kidding. Root for us. This nation is amazing and will totally win, no doubt."

by **Drawkland** » Mon Nov 23, 2020 3:52 pm

Groundball Day

beepbeep ... beepbeep ... beepbeep ... beepbeep ... beepbeep ...

"-it!" Tori cried out as she jolted awake in bed. Travis similarly jolted up, and after a moment of calming his frazzled nerves, turned off his phone alarm.

"Okay, next time, I am NOT letting you drive!" Travis insisted, as he stood up and walked over to his suitcase to get dressed.

"What are you doing getting up so quickly?" Tori asked, a bit confused.

"It's my turn to drive! Now get up!"

Sure enough, an hour or so later, the couple were coming up onto the same luxury hotel they'd gone to the previous day. This time, it was Travis taking the lead, and tracking behind the valet employee as he pulled the fancy sports car into the lot.

"But seriously, how do you think you'll be able to improve on this? I think everything went pretty smoothly last time, all things considered!" Tori insisted.

"Well, we were doing fine, until the cops got on us and put up the highway roadblock. I think if we can get on the highway before anybody knows something's amiss, we'll be able to get a lot further."

"And how do you plan on doing that?" Tori asked with a mocking tone.

"Like this!" Travis hissed, hiding behind another car as the valet guy exited the vehicle. Slowly, Travis crept up behind him, then suddenly popped up and decked him in the temple with no warning. The valet guy was taken completely off guard and fell to the ground, dropping the car keys and slumping unconscious as soon as his head hit the asphalt.

"That was brutal, oh my God!" Tori protested as Travis picked up the keys and motioned towards the car.

"Oh what, but tackling him to the ground, wrestling with him, then running him over is more acceptable?" Travis shot back, putting the key in the ignition as Tori got in and shut her door.

"Okay, but he's completely unconscious right now! You're not gonna at least move him somewhere else?"

"The problem with your plan was that he was still conscious, so he was able to call someone in before we'd even left the lot. This is how it's done!"

Travis was mostly correct, and as they slipped out of the valet lot, nobody seemed the wiser. Travis tried his best to blend in with the flow of traffic, despite the fact that he was driving a very noticeable expensive car.

"Alright, do you have the map up? How do we get to the freeway?" Travis asked, constantly looking around for police to show up.

"Uh, I think you have to turn left here and there should be an on-ramp at the end of that street." Tori replied, poking at her phone. Travis obliged and turned left.

"Perfect, I see it now. Oh, all the lights are green. I think I'm gonna go for this."

"Go for wha- oh!" Tori exclaimed as Travis downshifted and put the pedal to the medal, jerking the car forward. They accelerated past each intersection, dodging and passing between the rather sparse midday traffic.

Travis slowed as they got to the last intersection with the on-ramp straight ahead. Once they made it on the ramp safely, he once again pushed the pedal all the way down, and the car instantly responded, zipping right up the ramp so fast they almost got a little air when it leveled out with the highway.

"Now that's how you do it!" he laughed loudly, and shifted up another gear. The speedometer was already about to hit triple digits as Travis started weaving between cars, trying to keep the speed up as best he could. "See, they're probably just now finding the valet guy and calling the cops. We're already on the freeway, the only people who'll be after us now are the highway patrol!"

"Yeesh Trav, are you sure you've got this?" Tori asked nervously as they swerved around another car by inches.

"I'm 100% confident! Throw on some music or something!" he replied, shifting up again.

The car roared down the highway, zipping past the regular traffic so fast it felt like they were stationary objects. Tori had hooked her phone up to the car's radio and they were blasting loud rock music and yelling along to the lyrics. After about 15 minutes of this, they were far out of the city limits, and they had finally picked up a highway patrol car on their tail.

"I was wondering when they'd show up!" Travis said with a grin.

"So Mr. Smart Guy, what are you gonna do when they inevitably put up a road block?" Tori asked sarcastically.

"Simple, my dear ... just wait to see!"

After another 5 or so minutes of driving, Travis shifted up into the car's highest gear, and accelerated to be even faster.

"What the hell? Why weren't you going this fast the whole time?" Tori asked as she noticed a fourth patrol car had joined the pack trying its best to keep up with him.

"I'm betting they're setting up a road block ahead of us, but they're probably betting on us going a certain speed. Now I've accelerated, they probably won't be done setting up the block once we get to their spot!"

Sure enough, Travis was right, and they came across a couple patrol cars parked on the side of the road, getting some equipment out of their trunks. By now though, they'd cleared out a lot of the cars still on the highway, so once they blew past them, the road was wide open, giving Travis the chance to drop the pedal as far as it would go.

The chase went on for awhile longer, with more and more highway patrol cars getting in the chase, and a couple of helicopters watching the progress from above. By now, the couple had reached the coastline of the Equestrian mainland, with the highway starting to curve and bend with the coast, which at this point were some picturesque cliffs. With the unobstructed view though, the couple could see a completed roadblock a couple miles ahead.

"See this one they're actually done putting together, Trav, how are you gonna get past that one without killing us both?" Tori scolded, mostly jokingly.

"I'm not. Brace yourself." Travis said grimly, steeling his nerve. A few seconds later, the roadblock was straight up ahead. Travis simply pushed the gas all the way down one more time, and aimed just off to the right. Instead of ramming into the roadblock, the car ripped through the highway barrier and flew off the side of the seaside cliff.

"You motherfucker!" Tori screamed as the car held, almost suspended in the air, for a brief second before plummeting towards the ocean below.

beepbeep ... beepbeep ... beepbeep ... beepbeep ... beepbeep ...

The couple jerked awake once again. This time, Travis just turned off the alarm and they laid back down for a few minutes.

"You know, I think I'm done with this." Travis started, "It was fun a couple of times, but ..."

"Yeah, it's gotten a bit old now. Plus the more I think of it, the more morbid it feels."

"Definitely. Plus, and this may be wishful thinking," Travis wondered aloud, "But say we just randomly get out of the loop one day. If that day happened to be one where we go wild and kill ourselves, we'd never know. We'd be dead for real!"

"That's a risk we shouldn't take." Tori said seriously.

"For sure. Do you just want to go to the game today?" Travis asked, sliding out of bed to get dressed.

Tori hesitated for a moment and then she nodded. "Sure. Maybe we'll find something new."

This time the couple committed zero crimes or hazardous activities, though they did skip going to Mt. Harmony again. After all, once you've seen the place once, you've seen it a dozen times. In this case, literally.

At the game, they decided to do a little asking around. This time though, they started asking some ponies, some of which were natives and some of which were Scootalove City fans who had traveled in.

"I just realized, have we ever randomly talked to a pony?" Tori suddenly wondered aloud as they stood at the back of one section in the concourse.

Travis stood in thought for a moment, then shook his head. "I actually don't think we have. I think we mostly talked to any Drawkians we could find."

"Let's give that a shot, then."

It was the bottom of the third, and while Drawkland had a comfortable 2-0 lead at the time, Scootalove City was still very much in the game. The couple sat next to a couple of ponies dressed out in Scootalove City gear, in the ground level section a dozen or so rows behind the Unicorn's dugout.

"Hey there! Sorry we got here late!" Tori said with a smile, acting as if they were meant to be sitting there.

"Oh, h-hello there!" the female pony replied, waving with her hoof. "How are you all doing tonight?"

"We're doing just fine! Ready for a Drawkland win, in fact!" Travis said with annoying confidence.

"You really think you guys are gonna win this one? No way!" the male pony responded dismissively.

"You kidding? We're already up by two runs and the game's almost a third over. We got this in the bag!" Travis shot back.

"No way, no how!" the other guy responded, "Drawkland doesn't have a clutch bone in its body. The fact we're even in Game 5 is a fluke! It'd take a miracle for Scootalove City to lose this game."

"Haha, if you say so!" Tori replied before Travis could say something else. She then lowered her voice and whispered in Travis's ear. "Did you get a weird feeling when that pony said 'miracle'? It sent a total shiver down my spine."

Travis was about to shake his head, but then he thought about it, before getting a grim look on his face. "Oh my God. Think about it, Tori. A miracle. What happens in the ninth inning to end their rally?"

"A ... triple play ..." Tori said slowly, coming to the same realization. "Triple plays never happen! Those are absolute miracles themselves, especially in such a key part of a game ..."

"Tori ..." Travis said quietly, looking out at the field. "I think we have to make us lose this game."

"Are you serious? You think that's what's gonna get us out of this loop?"

"Maybe not ... but it has something to do with this game, right? Who says it's not this? We might as well try!" he insisted.

"Okay ... so what are we gonna do? Run on the field and interrupt the game?"

"Why not?" Travis said simply, and Tori had no response.

Sure enough, the game progressed exactly as it had every other time. The Base Corps was up 10-3 going into the ninth. They went three up, three down. Scootalove City came out in the bottom of the inning, batted two runners in, then got a three-run home run to make the score 10-8, with no outs. Two more singles and John Avidan came up to bat for the Unicorns.

"This is our chance right here!" Travis said to Tori, and they got up out of their seats, casually walking down the stairs to the wall right on the field. Franklin Bell threw a couple pitches to make the count 1-1. The next pitch would be the grounder that sent Drawkland to the quarterfinals on the triple play.

Trav and Tori had other plans, though. Travis suddenly hopped over the wall with Tori in tow (not hard, being Drawkians), and they rushed out onto the field, waving their arms and getting the attention of everyone. The stadium was already loud due to the excitement of the game, but now the crowd was in an uproar, a smattering of boos and confused cries.

"Don't hit this one!" Travis tried yelling at the batter. Tori was making faces at the shortstop, Serena Hearns. Being stationary though, it wasn't long until the stadium security came up and detained the couple. The crowd seemed to die down a bit after that, but the game was still intense and the pressure was on. As Travis and Tori were led off of the field and to be taken in for questioning, they looked over their shoulders to see what happened next.

While the fan interference had gotten a little in the heads of the players on the field, they were determined to not let it get to them. Serena Hearns was confused as to why the girl had been yelling at her in particular. She was a pro, though, and she wouldn't be shaken by someone trying to mess with her. She zeroed in on the batter. She had this.

Franklin Bell was a little alarmed but decided to keep his head on. He was only a rookie, and had never experienced fan interference that direct or strange, but he was still gonna stick with his slider on this next pitch.

John Avidan was the most determined. Stupid Drawkian fan telling him to not hit the next pitch? No way. He would be able to keep the comeback going. Scootalove City had a lot more to say today. The pitcher was winding up. Here comes the pitch.

It's a slider, Avidan could tell. He geared up to swing. This was a guaranteed base hit. The ball connected with bat and shot out to the field.

But it didn't go to shortstop. Serena Hearns ran to cover second. The ball zipped up the right side of the field instead, and right into the waiting glove of Roger Madison, who tagged the baserunner at first, tossed it quickly to Arthur Ware on first, who got the tag out and flung the ball as hard as he could across the diamond to the waiting glove of Sean Navis.

Alex Ponches had slid into the base, but the umpire was watching. The throw from Ware reached Navis's glove a split second before Ponches's toe hit the bag.

The runner was out.

The triple play was complete.

Drawkland would go on to the quarterfinals.

Drawkland              0 2 0 3 1 3 1 0 0  10
Scootalove City        0 0 0 0 2 0 0 1 5  8
Drawkland wins 3-2

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by **Daskel** » Mon Nov 23, 2020 5:00 pm

| BASEBALL | ICE HOCKEY | BLOCKBALL | OTHER SPORTS

WBC 50: Game five!
By Nakamura Go (@GomuraOfficial)

CASSADAIGUA-- Action is pretty tight in New Lakeland, as Daskel and Nova Anglicana are still tied, now 2-2 for a ticket to go into the Round of 16.

Takazaki Kaito started for team Daskel, and played one of his best games by far, international and nationally speaking. With a sensible mix of curves, fastballs and sliders, the pitcher from Ten Navigators managed to keep Nova Anglicana from scoring on five consecutive innings. We talked with Sawamura Shigeru, pitching coach of Team Daskel, about Kaito and Jossei's performance in game 3.

SS: We're surprised, yeah, but we also expected a ton from him. Last days in the bullpen were all about good news for Kaito. His slider go way more sharper since the first WBC. He has grown nicely since the Navigators drafted him. We'll keep working with him during this week

N: Let's talk about Nakamura. He sure had a most difficult start

S: Yeah. Those six runs in two innings had a toll on him. He lost focus and gave away two walks

N: But he could get his game back in the next innings

S: Right. Still, Suwada had to take the game from the sixth. He had a good game, no further comments"

N: Izo Kaoru?

SS: Garner had him there, not gonna lie. Thankfully Izo is someone really tough to take down. He's mad, I will not say "revenge", but he looks like he want that really bad. a rematch. We'll watching him closely, how he develop before this game. If we need to keep Watanabe, or even send Rokukawa to close, we'll do it"

Sawamura also confided with us about the designated pitcher for game 5.

S: Ten will start against Nova Anglicana on game 5. We have worked hard with Takaichi to have his control on spot. Shibaike worked with him personally this morning, and we believe everything is ready for this important game. His change-up is on a good place right now, and you'll see it a lot, but the most impressive pitch of him will always be his fastball. That thing looks like it rises, it's kind of scary.

N: If there's a rough spot, who will possibly be the reliever for this game?

Of course it will be our old man -laughs- Watanabe is the most reliable guy of the bullpen. He was part of many rough and demanding situations in the past, extra innings included, and due to it, it might be him the guy to trust if something like that happens"

We also talked with Haku Tadashi, batting coach of the team, about the amazing surge of power in this series.

"I'm not the guy who gives the orders -laughs- but I think Sakamoto and An finally have a good equilibrium on the decisions. Working with those two feels like we have two people as a Head coach. That first inning was a glimpse of that: one steal, two doubles and a mass of singles just in the first inning. That steal by Reizei was all him. We did not signal that and An wanted to kill him, but hey, the guy made that work. A bold first move to power your team, and it was even more important if you look it from the captaincy side. That was the biggest "just come out here and give your freaking all" I've seen from a captain"

The team's batting was top notch against Dan Cunningham. What's more, looking at the big picture, Team Daskel had scored 27 runs against their rival, over 15 runs against them. Haku told us a little about the next game's approach for the batters.

"For this game we'll taking a step towards power, but we're not aiming at homeruns, no... we need to send everything to deep, difficult locations. We had our batters practicing batting with those targets in mind. With Nova Anglicana's defense, you cannot play for regular contact"

For game five, there's no changes in the starters, but a quick batting lineup change: Fuji will swap places with Cho, making Fuji our next eighth batter. Fight and win! Team Daskel will be live tonight in every major broadcasting media. Keep cheering for your local Daskies!

by **Hapilopper** » Mon Nov 23, 2020 5:06 pm

Ferguson Stadium, Rutland, Cassadaigua
The World Baseball Classic 50 Playoffs: Hapilopper vs. Northwest Kalactin – Game Five
Dale Moss walked around the clubhouse of Ferguson Stadium to see his team, deep in thought, deep in worry. There had been too many miscues, too much arrogance, too much idiocy. On paper, the Hap Thrashers should have swept the team from Northwest Kalactin. On paper, this should have gone easily. But it hadn’t. The team had given up two crucial games to the Kalactanians because of arrogance. The hitters hadn’t taken their assignment seriously in game one – and as a result, while Hot Sauce Gibbs had registered one of his best games of the World Baseball Classic, it meant nothing, since the Haps only got one hit out of the entire game.

After being read the riot act after game one, the position players of the Hapilopper National Baseball Team realized they could very well get taken out by this team they had treated so lightly, this team they had not taken seriously enough. And they got to work, studying each of the Kalactanian pitchers. In game two, that homework paid off, and Hapilopper won game two, 5-2.

In game three, the Haps, and starting pitcher Cole Winthrop gave up two runs in the first inning and appeared to be playing on their back foot the whole game, dropping a heartbreaker, 3-2. In game four, the Haps came back, winning 9-6, on the strength of three home runs from Jerome Hayden – three towering shots that Jerome admired the hell out of every time.

But as Jerome slowly trotted the bases after blasting his third home run of the game, he turned to look at the Kalactin pitcher and shouted “AIN’T DEAD YET, MO’FUCKA!” It was a sign of contempt that was too much for Dale Moss to take. When Jerome got back to the dugout, Dale grabbed him and read him the riot act – again – as he grabbed his star shortstop by the shirt collar.

“How many times is this now, Hayden?” Dale asked angrily. “I keep telling you to stop this nonsense! You do it again, and we’re going to get screwed! If we lose this, this one’s on YOU!”

The emotions were running raw as the team prepared for the crucial game five. There was no excuses at this point, no mulligans left to take. The Haps HAD to win this game. They had to raise hell, and they knew it. And every player knew it, and was feeling the pressure.

It was twenty minutes before game time. And the entire team was sitting in their chairs, nervous, worried, concerned that they could realistically get knocked off by Northwest Kalactin, a team that, on paper, should have rolled over with ease. But the Haps learned a lesson in respecting their opponents – a lesson that perhaps they should have learned long ago.

Oh, did we say “the entire team”? There was one exception.

Jordan Meadows and Nolan Jefferson looked over to see an empty chair by Lucky Spalding’s locker. Lucky, the eccentric starting pitcher set to start tonight, was nowhere to be found.

“Any of you guys seen Lucky Spalding?” Jordan asked nervously.

Dale, who had been pacing around the clubhouse, turned to look at the empty chair. Of all the things that could be bothering the Hap Thrashers now – and their pitcher, the guy assigned to start tonight’s game, was nowhere to be found? Dale didn’t know what to say or do. He froze. It was almost as if he went into a panic. Maybe he was in the bullpen warming up. Or maybe he was getting himself a chili dog. But he was nowhere, and the skipper was starting to freak out.

“Someone go check the shower,” Dale said haltingly. “Maybe he’s meditating butt-ass naked in the shower.”

Victor Foster jumped out of his chair and rushed to the shower.

“He’s not there, Skip.”

“Someone call him. I know he brings his cell phone to the ball park.”

Half the team started calling him. And there was no response, primarily because Lucky’s phone was still in his locker. Jordan looked over at Lucky’s phone and then back at the rest of the team.

“Fuck,” Dale said quietly. “Unless he comes back in a minute, Martin, get ready, we might need to have you starting.”

Jordan’s brother, Martin Meadows, had been pencilled in as the team’s emergency starter. He had served as such when Charlton Forest suffered his career-ending arm injury a year ago, and when Vic Foster had been suspended for blatantly throwing a then-illegal spitball several years previous. Martin grimly nodded his head, grabbed his glove and jogged out of the clubhouse to start warming up in the bullpen.

With Martin leaving the clubhouse, the team pretty much understood that he would be starting the crucial game five against Northwest Kalactin – pretty much the last thing they needed in this must-win game. And Martin, famous for his lack of control as much as his velocity, was probably not the ideal choice for the Hap Thrashers. His pitches had ended up in more than one press box, had knocked down a beer vendor in the stands and caused a clubhouse conflict last season when he accidentally beaned a teammate’s girlfriend in Garvinson.

And then, all of a sudden, the team could hear loud screaming from the tunnel that sounded like Martin verbally reaming someone. The whole team came out to the dugout to find Lucky Spalding, their starting pitcher, relaxed in the front row of the stands with a beer in one hand and a female Hapiloppian fan in the other.

Dale came out and looked like he wanted to murder his starting pitcher. Lucky looked about as confident as could be.

“Look, I’ve been preparing all day, skip,” Lucky said. “It’s like, when you prepare for an exam and you’re ready for it, I’m ready for this game. I’ve been looking at film, warming up and reading pitch charts. I’m not going to freak myself out sitting in that damn pressure cooker of a clubhouse. I’m going to relax, get in the right frame of mind and I’m going to win this ball game.”

“Alright, fine,” Dale snapped. “If you lose, though, this one’s on you.”

by **Banija** » Mon Nov 23, 2020 6:07 pm

Banijan starting pitchers dominate en route to slamming door on the Greater Nordics

Banijans celebrate series clinching victory in Game 4 against the Greater Nordics

STARKVILLE, CASSADAIGUA- The playoffs are here. And the Banijans do what they have done. For the fifth straight classic, they have won in the opening round, downing the Greater Nordics by a series scoreline of 3 games to 1. An excellent pitching performance from Ensa Suso powered the Banijans to a Game 3 victory, while in the elimination Game in Game 4, it would be the Banijans bats, who would wake up and dominate their opponents en route to a Game 4 victory and a series win. Opposite them, the Royal Kingdom of Quebec also won their series over Liventia 3-1, setting up a tantalizing Commonwealth series between these two rivals.

Game 3 was much more of a pitcher's duel. It would be the veteran starter, Ensa Suso, taking the mound for his fifth classic, against rookie right hander Olav Mäkelä. And, of course, there was a change of rules. With the Greater Nordics the designated home team, there was no DH. The Banijans lost Bailo Suso in center field, and of course, got worse offensively. But these are the opponents preferred rules. The rookie Olav Mäkelä was making her first playoff start. And going into a duel with Ensa Suso, there was a lot of pressure on her. But despite the pressure, she performed admirably under it.

Unfortunately, however, it wasn't enough, and the Banijans tacked 4 runs on the rookie in the sixth inning to win the game, 4-1. Ensa Suso pitched 8 innings of one run baseball, while Sama Kinte went 1-2-3 in the 9th. The Banijan bats exploded in Game 4, as it wasn't much of a contest with the Banijans romping by a score of 14-3. The Banijans celebrated- but the focus quickly turned to the Royal Kingdom of Quebec. Ousman Kakay called the Quebecois an important rival, and said that this would be a great litmus test of where the Banijans are. Getting all the way to the last 8 of a 78 team tournament would truly be a special accomplishment, but the Banijans would need to rest up and prepare to give it all they had against the Quebecois.

by **Tikariot** » Mon Nov 23, 2020 6:20 pm

Part 1
Part 2
Part 3
Part 4
Part 5
Part 6
Part 7
Part 8

Yes, Doctor, I've been told that I need help.

Start at the beginning? OK. I was manufactured in a--

Oh, not that early? But you said--

Alright then. It was a bright afternoon in Banija, the sun was shining down on the lush grass of the diamond and--

Aha, focus on the relevant. You're getting a little demanding here, aren't ya? But ok. So it was my turn. I was thrown and hit and then went over the fence in a homerun, which technically is a great feeling for a softball, I have to tell you, but I went over everything and landed in a bush. Where I was stuck and nobody even came looking for me. I got wet and muddy and then a dog found me.

Yes, a dog. What does it matter what breed of dog? And how should I know what different dogs are called? Describe him? OK. Pointy teeth and lots and lots of slobber. Why are you rolling your eyes at me now? Anyways, so the dog brought me home and we'd play fetch and all and then the dog buried me. Yes, buried me alive! What do you mean that it does not make a difference?

Aaaanyways, he buried me and nobody even looked for me. Then they did some excavating and I was dumped into a dump truck. Can you believe it? A dump truck! So they dumped me at, well, the dump and I managed to roll off and landed in some water, where I learned I could float. A little girl fished me out of the water with a net and took me home.

Oh, doc, if that was all of it, I'd be doing great, but no, she had to trade me for a WBC baseball! Me, an Olympic softball, one of the chosen few that were carefully hand selected for the big responsibility of--

What do you mean I digress? Great, so I finally have someone who I can actually talk to and you keep cutting me off! What do I pay you for, hm? Oh wait - nevermind the paying part. So where was I? Ah yes, being traded. So that's what she did and then they dumped me with hurt baseballs and then into the garbage. Someone found me and gave me to another not as little girl and she brought me home and put me on a shelf.

No, shelf was ok, trust me, after doghouse, dirt and dump, a shelf was perfectly fine. So yeah, as I was sitting on my shelf, I was trying to get the humans to get me equipment, so I could get in touch with my union to see, if we could help these poor underprivileged baseballs, but they just would not! I am trying to do something good here, you know? For the greater good and they just completely ignore my needs! And then--

No, that did not traumatize me, just made me angry. OK. I am not quite sure why I wanted to know, but I was wondering where humans were manufactured. And later that evening - I found out. And it was the worst thing I have ever seen. Doctor, can you make me unsee it? Hypnotize me, perform open cork surgery, I don't care, just please get rid of it!

Of course you can, you are a doctor! So you can't. But what am I going to do now? Relive the horror until the end of my days? You are useless! Where did you get your degree? The toy store? Oh, you did! Ah because you are a plush tiger. So you are not even a psychiatrist?

Uh, no, I had not asked if you actually were one. So now it's my fault? Well, in fact it is.

Great. Just great.

[to be continued]

by **Cassadaigua** » Mon Nov 23, 2020 6:31 pm

(2) Zwangzug vs (31) Chromatika @ Peak'N'Break Stadium, Grande Mountain

Game 5:

Chromatika                   0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0  0
Zwangzug                     0 0 0 1 0 3 0 0 X  4

Zwangzug wins series, 3-2

(3) Nova Anglicana vs (30) Daskel @ Qusmair Stadium, New Lakeland

Game 5:

Daskel                       0 0 0 0 0 2 1 1 2 0  6
Nova Anglicana               1 2 0 0 1 0 2 0 0 2  8

Nova Anglicana wins series, 3-2

(4) Cassadaigua vs (29) Krigiersien @ Dagan Airways Stadium, Concord Heights (scorinated by Chromatika)

Game 5:

Kriegiersien           0 1 0 0 0 1 3 4 0  9
Cassadaigua            0 0 0 9 2 1 2 1 X 15

Cassadaigua wins series, 3-2

(9) Hapilopper vs (24) Northwest Kalactin @ Ferguson Stadium, Rutland

Game 5:

Northwest Kalactin           0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 1  2
Hapilopper                   0 0 0 1 4 1 0 0 X  6

Hapilopper wins series, 3-2

(12) Drawkland vs (21) Ethane @ Brattleboro Technical Institute Stadium, Brattleboro

Game 5:

Ethane                       0 0 1 1 0 0 0 1 0 0  3
Drawkland                    1 0 0 0 2 0 0 0 0 1  4

Drawkland wins series, 3-2

(14) South Newlandia vs (19) Super-Llamaland @ New Lakeland University Stadium, New Lakeland

Game 5:

Super-Llamaland              0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 1  2
South Newlandia              1 1 0 0 0 0 2 0 X  4

South Newlandia wins series, 3-2

(15) Kohnhead vs (18) Tikariot @ Grande Mountain University Stadium, Grande Mountain

Game 5:

Tikariot                     0 3 0 0 0 3 0 1 0  7
Kohnhead                     1 0 0 0 0 0 0 3 0  4

Tikariot wins series, 3-2

(16) Ranoria vs (17) The Sherpa Empire @ Victoriaville University Stadium, Victoriaville

Game 5:

The Sherpa Empire            0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0  1
Ranoria                      2 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 X  3

Ranoria wins series, 3-2

ROUND OF 16:

(1) Newmanistan vs (16) Ranoria @ Qusmair Stadium, New Lakeland

(8) Hampton Island vs (9) Hapilopper @ Cocoa-bo Stadium, Starksville

(5) Sarzonia vs (12) Drawkland @ Ferguson Stadium, Rutland

(4) Cassadaigua vs (13) Quintessence of Dust @ Dagan Airways Stadium, Concord Heights

(6) Banija vs (22) Royal Kingdom of Quebec @ Cassgo Stadium, Victoriaville

(3) Nova Anglicana vs (14) South Newlandia @ Peak'N'Break Stadium, Grande Mountain

(7) Ko-oren vs (10) TJUN-ia @ Winchester City Lottery Stadium, Winchester

(2) Zwangzug vs (18) Tikariot @ Five Star Mobile Stadium, Brattleboro

by **Ranoria** » Mon Nov 23, 2020 8:28 pm

Social media posters claimed that Leonardo Harrison's prediction of winning a postseason game was correct ignore the first part of "Harrison's Guarantee," that being that the Krauts would win 20 games in WBC 50's group stage

Prior to the first matchday of WBC 50, Krauts star shortstop Leonardo Harrison, in an interview with RSSN, predicted that the national team would win 20 regular season contests and a postseason tournament.

Months later, Leonardo Harrison's squad emerged from the regular season 19-11, an impressive mark after last year, but certainly not quite hitting his promise of "20 wins."

Just after the win over the defending champion Sherpa Empire in the knockout rounds, an online personality posted the following on twii.tur: “Leonardo Harrison delivering on his promise to win a game in the knockout stages! Knew we could trust anything that comes out of that man's mouth!” The tweet was accompanied by a photo of Harrison with the signage, “20 or nothing!”

The personality's claim has since been retwii.tured nearly 4,500 times, and its repost on Williams’ Instagram page has received nearly 47,000 likes. The tweet also has been widely shared by pro-Trump Facebook users, including one who wrote: “This is what a legend looks like folks, the greatest of all time once he hangs them up.”

But Harrison's claim was not wholly true. the term. As we pointed out, the 20 game guarantee was essential ignored.

However, Harrison did win a series in the group stage, and was just one game shy of notching the win total he promised.

As such, our grade for this claim is somewhat true.

by **Drawkland** » Tue Nov 24, 2020 1:20 am

CORPSGUY725'S BLOG

Drawkland Will Never Make The WBC Quarterfinals.
Especially Not These Ones...

Mark my words, friends! It is literally impossible that the Base Corps will ever, and I mean EVER, make the World Baseball Classic Quarterfinals. It's physically impossible. In this essay I will lay down all the evidence for why Drawkland will never make it past the Round of 16 in the WBC, and specifically not in this golden edition. I'm corpsguy725, the sports-obsessed blogger from Drawkland, so you know you can take my word as objective fact.

Exhibit A: Precedent

I suppose this one is the most obvious, and that's that we've never been this far in the WBC, so obviously it's just not something we're ever capable of. Whether it's the original Corps squad, the Elite Eleven, the returning squad, or the new-look squad we have now, none of them could manage to break the glass ceiling. Therefore, it simply cannot be done. You could say to me, "but corpsguy725, couldn't the same be said for the IBC squads of old?" to which I say, shut up. The difference is that the IBC team, while losing for 5 straight tournaments in the Round of 16, was at least consistent in playing solid group stage ball before laying down to die in the first round of playoffs.

The Base Corps doesn't even have the decency to actually make the playoffs every season. You can talk all you want about the randomness of the game of baseball and that being the nature, but come on! Newmanistan has like a billion titles and they're playing the same sport we do. And they're not the only dynasty that's graced the international diamonds, so you can't really use baseball being zany as an excuse. Drawkland has never convincingly won a group in baseball ever, even in our best seasons (which you could argue this one is).

Let's just take a quick look at the history of the Base Corps in the WBC, with some notes of interest.

WBC 35: 2-13, last in group. (fellow unranked team in group was The Great Pond. you know the rest)
WBC 36: 11-19, last in group.
WBC 37: 18-12, 2nd in group. 3-2 series loss to Gregoryisgodistan, Ro16. (Game 5 featured GGS scoring 4 runs in the 8th to go up 4-7 and win)
WBC 38: 17-7, 1st in group. 2-0 series loss to Kinzenland (who???), Ro16. (Game 2 featured KZN scoring a run in the bottom of the 9th to force extra innings, then a walkoff in the 10th)
WBC 39: 15-15, 4th in group.
WBC 40: 14-16, 4th in group.
WBC 41: 17-13, 2nd in group. 3-2 series loss to Scootalove City, Ro16. (Yes, smartass, it was that series)
WBC 42: 13-17, 5th in group.
WBC 43: 16-8, 1st in group. 2-0 series win over South Covello, Ro32. 3-0 series loss to hosts Cassadaigua, Ro16. (9th WBC and we finally won a playoff series ... in the Ro32)
WBC 44: 17-13, 2nd in group. 3-1 series loss to Vangaziland, play-in round. (Game 4 featured VNG scoring a run in the 9th to tie and 10th to win)
WBC 45: 16-8, 2nd in group. 2-1 series loss to Lycrabon, play-in round. (Game 3 featured Lycrabon scoring 6 runs in the last 3 innings to win 6-4)
WBC 46: 12-18, 4th in group.
WBC 47: 20-12, 5th in Casaran table. 3-2 series loss to The Greater Nordics, Ro16. (This was our highest playoff seed to date, at #5)
WBC 48: 17-13, 2nd in group. 3-2 series loss to Cassadaigua, Ro16. (on home soil, of course. Game 5 featured an extra-innings walkoff home run)
WBC 49: 17-13, 3rd in group.
WBC 50: 19-11, 1st in group. 3-2 series win over Ethane, Ro32. (this edition has not yet concluded for us)

Look at that. Look upon this devastation, and weep. 16 editions of the World Baseball Classic. A cumulative group stage record of 241-208, for a winning percentage around 53%. Nine playoff appearances ... 2 series wins. Both of those wins came in the huge editions of the WBC in the Round of 32, so Drawkland has never advanced beyond the Round of 16. These notes bring me to my next point.

Exhibit B: The Late Game Collapse

Now, take a little gander at each of those eight playoff series which we have lost. In three of them, the final game of the series went into extra innings. We scored in none of those extra innings. In six of them, we lost thanks to decisive runs being scored in the eighth or ninth innings (in WBC 45's case, it was both innings). The only exceptions are the WBC 43 series against Cassadaigua, where we were swept straight out of the playoffs (but we had finally won a playoff series bro!), and the WBC 47 series against The Greater Nordics. Technically the Nordics scored in the ninth inning, but we were already losing 6-4, so it being 7-4 made no difference as we failed to score in the bottom of the ninth. Oh yeah, we were heavy favorites in that matchup, too.

The memes have been circulating around for awhile now, especially the infamous 10-3 game against Scootalove City, but the failure of the Base Corps far transcends that. I'm not sure anybody actually realized how deep the legacy of failure surrounding the Base Corps really goes. Every single time we make the Round of 16, we're stymied, stumped, stopped. It doesn't matter how heavily we're favored or how shoddy the other team looks, they come out on top. Our first two playoff appearances were enough to support this point. Sure, back in the 30s, Gregoryisgodistan were a powerhouse. But in WBC 37, they were pretty pedestrian, and we were on a hot streak getting our first playoff appearance. We fought long, hard, and skillfully. And then we completely collapsed in the eighth inning and not only let the Bat Slaves back in, but let them get an insurmountable lead.

Our second series was even more impressively awful. We had gained our first group title, gone 17-7 (woah nice), and gained the 7th seed (woah nice) in the playoffs. We were facing some nobody squad that lucked into the playoffs called Kinzenland. Everybody, and I mean everybody, expected Drawkland's Base Corps to finally break through and become a contender, like our other national teams had done already. The response? Getting swept. Sure, we would've been flattened by Schiltzberg the next round, but seriously?

That's when the Elite Eleven era began, which was a pathetic playoff-less slump. Then DISC brought back a squad of real players, and we instantly made it to the playoffs for WBC 41. Yes, that WBC 41. And on this new squad of mostly young players, there was this rookie ace closer known as Franklin Bell.

Exhibit C: Franklin Bell

Ah yes, Franklin Bell. I have to admit, the guy is a master at killing opposing teams in a single frame. Provided, of course, he's on a Drawkian PBL team facing another Drawkian PBL team in a PBL game within Drawkland's borders. I swear, as soon as you take this guy off the mainland, he loses 47 IQ points and becomes a complete fool.

The infamous game against Scootalove City was entirely on the back of Franklin Bell. We were up by 7 runs, sure, so a closer might not have been necessary. The management were worried though, this being our first playoff series in three Classics, and a chance for Drawkland to finally make the playoffs. Why not bring the rookie ace in for an easy close and credit for shutting the door on a beautiful moment in Drawkian sports history?

If only they knew, man. The collapse was awesome, like in the archaic sense of the word. Like watching hellfire rain down from the sky to obliterate a city of sin (coincidentally, it did turn every Drawkian watching into a pillar of salt), it was a sight to behold. Something you'd never want to watch again, but something you have to watch for the first time, just so you know why your eyes should never feast upon such a spectacle ever again. It's on every single "MOST AMAZING ENDINGS - WBC" compilation video on the internet, which makes me want to shoot myself every time I see one (because you know which game is always on the thumbnail).

The worst part was that it was too late to take out Bell. The inning happened too fast. The last four runs were scored on a grand slam - there was no time to warm up another reliever to throw into the fire. They simply decided to let Bell ride it out. After all, he's the ace! He's got this! Until he didn't. Until Drawkland was humiliated on a scale the WBC may never see again. And you know what happened to the kid? They kept him around.

Franklin Bell has been riding the Base Corps roster every season since then, even through a couple personnel changes. His domestic resume is too impressive to ignore, and he almost always gets the job done during the group stage ... almost. But the group stage isn't what matters here. Those come and go, we ebb and flow, they simply happen to us. Drawkland, a nation which is a contender, a household name in every other international competition we compete in, is irrelevant in the WBC playoffs. You know why? Franklin Bell.

Since the Scootalove City game, there's been six times we reached the playoffs. One of those is this current edition, and I'm not talking about that yet. Another one was when we finally won a series (in the Round of 32, so who cares), then got swept by the damn Dagans. Another was the Greater Nordics series where we were down going into the final innings so the closer wasn't brought out. The other three? Franklin Bell was on the mound in the last inning. Franklin Bell gave up a run or three that sealed our fate.

Franklin Bell has singlehandedly destroyed the Base Corps for nearly ten editions, and he's still around. He'll probably be taking the mound against Sarzonia. We'll probably be in a Game 5, up by a run or maybe tied, and Sarzonia will gleefully spank the shit out of half the pitches Bell throws. The Bell won't ring anyone up, he'll simply lay down and die.

Exhibit D: The Curse

"But corpsguy725!" you respond, hoping that I won't notice the fact that you're definitely crying because the Base Corps has no chance, "We beat Ethane! We've finally won a playoff series again! We have momentum going into the Round of 16!"

BEGONE WITH YOU! You're merely a fool. Did you not actually watch what was happening in this series? Did you not see Bell shit his pants yet again in Game 4, when we could've closed the series out early and gotten extra time to prepare for Sarzonia? Did you not notice that because of this, Bell was fatigued and didn't even pitch in the pivotal Game 5 which we won? Are you blind or do you simply refuse to see?

I have seen the truth, my friends. The dirty, ugly, unfortunate truth. Drawkland is cursed in the WBC. Margaret needed a joke to play upon some unsuspecting team in the field of baseball, and that poor victim ended up being us. The Great Pond simply wasn't cutting it anymore. After all, they did LOSE the Classic. That's not good enough to truly burn its shockwave into the history of baseball. This narrative, though, was too perfect. The setup was grand, the execution was flawless, and the punchline landed so hard the effects are being felt years and years later. Margaret used this young, clueless rookie, and turned him into her weapon of destruction and pain.

Franklin Bell, little oopsies here, little slip-ups there, and the Corps crashes, again and again and again. The poor fool doesn't even know that his pitches are being thrown with the invisible marionette strings pulling them errant. This curse will continue to haunt the Corps forever, unless Bell can somehow break the spell and win a decisive elimination game for Drawkland. Otherwise, we are headed for doom, Classic after Classic. I don't trust him though. I believe the Base Corps is destined for mediocrity, to continue being Maggie's sick punchline for the baseballing world to gape incredulously at, then proceed to laugh hysterically. This is the truth, and I stand by it.

This is why Drawkland will never make the quarterfinals. We will never make it if Bell doesn't break the curse, and he simply can't break it. Margaret's hold on him is too strong, and there's no way around that. Even if we continue making Rounds of 16, they will be forever haunted with our presence. The unofficial first-round bye for whoever plays us. This edition's lucky winner is the Stars of Sarzonia.

Exhibit E: Sarzonia

At this point I'm like eight beers deep, it's 5am, and I'm starting to hallucinate a little bit. I have no time left to talk about the Stars, nor do I want to. I've already laid the evidence before you, but if you need further proof, look no further than the IBC. Hell, we were vastly favored in that quarterfinal matchup, and Sarzonia still came away with the easy win to crush the hopes and dreams of Drawkians everywhere. They're actually favored in this series matchup, so the eventual result is clear to everyone.

Drawkland will fall.

Bell will fail.

All the while, Margaret sits and laughs.

Have fun in the quarterfinals, Sarzonia. You just got the luckiest Round of 16 draw a nation could ask for.

I'm corpsguy725, and I'm done

by **Quintessence of Dust** » Tue Nov 24, 2020 5:15 am

Here’s what some of the Things did on their day off. This assumes they already know they’re playing Cassadaigua at the DAS, but still have a day off, for some reason. Fluid time, baby! This also employs a somewhat generous interpretation of RP permissions, so if there’s a problem with anything herein feel free to retcon it.

Hideaki Matsuoka, 1B:

Thorsten Kaufer, 1B:

Luke Phelps, C:

Jian Jiang, C:

Katenka Andreeva, CF:

Kayley Symonds, LF:

by **Hampton Island** » Tue Nov 24, 2020 7:38 am

(Setting: Cocoa-bo Stadium, CEO and Assistant converse)

CEO: Just got off the phone with the CEO of Charged Up Transmissions. They are willing to give us more money for the sponsorship of Alex Knight, but it is going to come with a lot of conditions. I’ll be watching for it to arrive in my inbox.

Assistant: NSSCRA will be interesting this year, some new entries in the series that will probably do pretty well.

CEO: No doubt that it will be competitive, but we need to make sure that we are doing well, too. We need TV exposure, but I don’t want to do it in the way Gil Archer did or have my drivers walk around in chicken suits like the Hapilopper guy.

Assistant: Gil isn’t even coming back this year. Biggest chicken yet.

CEO: My thoughts exactly. Afraid to get retaliated against for all of the stunts he pulled off last year. Their race team probably has a reason for it, if so I will read it when I get to it. Have not read many press releases yet. Charged Up gave me some slack for being here and not in Tundra Falls. It’s a damn exhibition. This is the round of 16!

Assistant: I agree, definitely.

CEO: He also made me wonder about whether or not we could get a bear to drive a race car. I know the pitching thing never worked, but maybe one of those cubs will have a different talent that we have not fully explored yet. If they can play baseball, then maybe they can drive.

Assistant: With the sheer size of them, it is impossible.

CEO: Nonsense, those tall Valentine Z drivers fit into a regulation size stock car, no reason we can’t do the same with a bear.

Assistant: I can’t see how it would work, their superior strength is neutralized in a race car. The same way women are as effective as men in a race car, the superior strength of the male is neutralized.

CEO: I wouldn’t say that while in Cassadaigua.

Assistant: Yeah, this is just one of those oddball countries like Equestria and their talking ponies.

CEO: I never heard you being so critical of Cassadaigua before.

Assistant: Sorry, I went to the store to pick up something to eat last night, and the way they were ogling me like a piece of meat made me feel insecure for a moment. It’ll make me appreciate the gold diggers back at home. At least you know what is on their mind.

CEO: You should be flattered.

Assistant: It’s rather annoying, it happens every time we come here. I want gender roles to be back to normal, dammit!

CEO: I haven’t experienced it, maybe I shouldn’t be having staff of mine run errands for me.

Assistant: Trust me, it’s annoying. It’s like I just want to go to the store and get one of those cheap ready to order subs and be on my way, but they look at you like I should be making their sandwiches.

CEO: Go to a SubHouse drive thru. They are pretty good.

Assistant: Didn’t think about that. Will do that next time.

by **Cassadaigua** » Tue Nov 24, 2020 10:19 am

When Needed, Offense Steps Up,
By Chelsea Dufresne, Concord Heights Times

The last thing that anyone in Cassadaigua wanted with this World Baseball Classic was to flame out in the round of 32. However, as I talked about in my last article, we saw a lot of very competitive series across the board. We were not the only baseball power in a do-or-die Game 5. Nova Anglicana, Zwangzug, and The Sherpa Empire were in the same boat. So, too, was Hapilopper, a nation approaching the top to be considered a power. Chromatika, Daskel, and Ranoria would join Kriegiersien as nations looking to pull off a major upset, along with Northwest Kalactin. Fans of other sports currently recognize the names Chromatika and Ranoria, and I do think that when a nation shows that, within its pedigree, it can win big games, that they should never be discounted in a competition that it is not their bread and butter. Daskel is an up and coming star in this sport that simply had a tough seed. Northwest Kalactin and Kriegiersien have done this long enough now to the point where they can go on a run here and there. Sports in Kriegiersien have been looking pretty good lately, and we saw that with their baseball team. In the end, the round of 16 sees the established powers, with one exception, showing why they have ranked highly. However, The Sherpa Empire, the defending champion of the World Baseball Classic, is already going home. You had to feel like someone big was going to go home early. It does keep us from a Sherpa Empire vs Newmanistan series, but Ranoria rose up and got the win, and now it is they who take on the #1 seed.

For Cassadaigua, it was a nail biter of a series. They were down two games to one, and trailing 4-0 after six, and 4-1 after eight in game four. Three outs away from being eliminated, but that was not going to happen, rallying back in the ninth, and then winning in the 11th. When that happened, you had to feel that maybe it was meant to be that we would pull off this series. In Game 5, thanks to a 9-run fourth inning, the Fillies took a big lead and never looked back in a 15-9 win. They made it. They had survived.

The reward for this is a series against Quintessence of Dust, a very dangerous opponent that beat out The Sherpa Empire for the group title, and then eliminated Abanhfleft. Manager Maddie Polanco realizes this is a very tough series, “They are called the Things, interesting name, and they have done great things ever since they played their first game. Once they ended up hitting their stride within the group stage, they were as good as anyone. You can see that with a new nation with ability, and I realize they are a returnee and not new, that sometimes they don’t start as well, but when they figure it out, they are as strong as anyone. They beat The Sherpa Empire, the defending champion of the Classic, in their group. They then knocked off Abanhfleft, who I remind you was scorching hot to finish off the group stage. They did not have much trouble with the Fleftics at all. We are going to be involved in a tough series here, and that shows how good this Classic is. Sixteen nations involved, all of whom are capable of pulling it off.”

Polanco is right in that that this is not an ideal matchup, but there is not a good matchup at this point. Instead of #13 Quintessence of Dust, it could be #12 Drawkland or #14 South Newlandia. You want to try one of them instead? Okay, maybe in the round of sixteen Drawkland is not a bad matchup given their history, but eventually they are going to figure out how to make a quarterfinal. South Newlandia just knocked a very good Super-Llamaland team and are a team on the rise. In fact, I know a lot of people who would not be surprised if the Elephants make a deep run right now. You could have #18 Tikariot, who knocked off Kohnhead, and we have already seen enough of them in this Classic to know how good they can be.

Yes, a lot of favorites ended up winning in the first round, but here are the teams that are considered the underdog, due to their seed, in round of 16: Ranoria (playing Newmanistan), Hapilopper (playing Hampton Island), Drawkland (playing Sarzonia), Quebec (playing Banija), South Newlandia (playing Nova Anglicana), TJUN-ia (playing fellow hyphenated nation, Ko-oren), and Tikariot (playing Zwangzug). Do any of those nations sound appealing as an opponent? This is a credit to how far the World Baseball Classic has come. There are no weak links now, enjoy the baseball, folks. It’s going to be classic.

by **Sarzonia** » Tue Nov 24, 2020 11:11 am

In a hotel room in Rutland, Sarzonian national baseball team starting pitcher Jeff Parrish had trouble sleeping.

It wasn't nerves, at least as far as he could tell. The Stars had a valuable extra day to rest and get Parrish to start Game 1 against Drawkland on normal rest. Had Terre Septentrionale somehow forced a do-or-die Game 5, Parrish would have pitched on three days' rest.

As of now, Parrish would be followed by erstwhile ace Mark Conroy, then Jamie Pearson and Brian Lynch if the series advanced to four games. When, Parrish thought as he glanced bleary-eyed at the alarm clock on the nightstand next to his bed. 3:17 a.m.

He looked over and saw Tyrell Douglass, the team's closer and his roommate sound asleep. Lucky fucker, Parrish thought. He sat up in bed, debating whether to get out of bed and walk to the diner down the street for a cup of coffee. He realised that would preclude him from ever getting back to sleep, so he decided against it.

He still grabbed his wallet and his key fob for his room. The hotel restaurant would be closed, but he could still try to collect his thoughts. He thought about Base Corps designated hitter Franky Jones, realising that the Stars would have to face him all five games.

Meanwhile, Sarzonia hitting coach Chad Rossinger had reason for optimism. Luke Brinkley would be starting every match at DH, giving Drawkish pitchers like Leo Roy, Darien Rodriguez and the rest of the staff reason to lose sleep themselves. Sure, Kenny Evans was a home run threat, as was Ryan Brady, but Sarzonia just felt less potent without Brinkley.

Cody Frazier was becoming more of a home run threat and Jose Lopez was beginning to come around from an extended slump, but a hitter like Brinkley made all the other hitters better. He also made things easier for the likes of Parrish and Conroy by allowing them more leeway to challenge hitters.

Still, Parrish wasn't sure why he couldn't sleep. The beds in this hotel were perfectly fine. In fact, they were at least as good as the Radisson Woodstock's, which were the best ones in Sarzonia. He pulled up the scouting report for the Drawkish hitters one more time, hoping to find not just a vulnerability, but one he could take advantage of without completely altering his approach.

"Get back to bed," Parrish heard as he saw Douglass turn over in his bed. "We can't be at our best if you're not at yours. Get some sleep!"

"I'll try," Parrish said, plugging his mobile phone back into its charger. He then lied down and turned toward the wall with his back to Douglass. He closed his eyes and tried -- again -- to get to sleep.

by **Ranoria** » Tue Nov 24, 2020 12:25 pm

A Puncher's Chance Was Just Enough Against the Sherpa Empire...But We're Going to be Downgrading to a Chance in Hell Against the Newmanistan

After a stunning win over The Sherpa Empire, Ranoria now faces what could be the best team in baseball

It was a pandemonium in Victoriaville University Stadium when the Krauts held the Sherpa Empire runless in 9th inning to secure their first ever postseason victory in the World Baseball Classic. Even after dominating the 14th ranked team in the Classic, The Greater Nordics, in the group stage, no one could have anticipated Ranoria's embattled national team to knock off the defending champions in dramatic fashion.

Now, some unfortunate circumstances certainly contributed to the victory. One of the Empire's better pitchers, Kami Akunjee, went down in the first inning after throwing a fastball that any pitcher who played in the Federation would be envious of. Pilgaonkar replaced him, and that was no doubt the decision that wrote the narrative for the third game of the series, when the Krauts would produce a full-team effort in the first third of the game to rack up a nice 7-1 cushion. That would prove just enough to hold off the Sherpas, who came roaring back late to finish 6-3. Had Ajunjee not gone down, it's fair to say this could have gone very differently, and we'd be writing about how the defending champions cruised to a 3-1 victory in the series.

Game 1:
The Sherpa Empire            1 0 2 0 0 0 0 2 0  5
Ranoria                      0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0  1
Game 2
The Sherpa Empire            0 1 1 0 0 2 0 0 0  4
Ranoria                      0 0 1 0 0 3 0 1 X  5
Game 3*
Ranoria                      3 2 2 0 0 1 0 0 1  9
The Sherpa Empire            1 0 0 2 1 0 0 0 2  6
Game 4
Ranoria                      0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0  1
The Sherpa Empire            0 1 1 0 0 0 3 0 X  5
Game 5
The Sherpa Empire            0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0  1
Ranoria                      2 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 X  3

*The game in question, in which Kami Akunjee went down with an elbow injury

Even in a worst case scenario, we can't see Akunjee allowing half as many runs as we scored in that first three innings, and frankly his injury is the reason that we can't definitively say that the best team won here. Yes, the Krauts have been a nice surprise for Ranoria, and anyone who likes a good underdog story, but they were only really able to prove that they had were able to hold their own with the best in the world, not so much that they can, undisputedly, prove that they can beat them in a five game series.

No one is happy that Akunjee went down, he's a fantastic player who we were all worried about going up against. But we can only play whoever's in front of us. For now, we're through with the defending champs, and onto the top ranked team in the world. I, no we, don't have time to worry about what happened in our last series.

-Leonardo Harrison at a postgame press conference after the game 5 victory over the Sherpa Empire

Our prediction? He's going to have time to reminisce when the Krauts upstart run comes to an abrupt halt. Would you all like to know how good Newmanistan is? First of all, they have a whopping six championships in the Classic. A shocking statistic? That's more than the number of losses they have in this edition. In WBC 49, where they were the silver medalists, they went 22-8. That means that, combined between this edition and the last, they would only have one more loss than the Krauts. That, kids, is what we call scary. And for those of you who don't know, the Rockets are not only the top-seeded team in the tournament, but were the 5th-ranked team coming into the competition.

But hey, we've been wrong before. So enough with the pessimism!

Leonardo Harrison (left) and Philip Lux (right) have been every bit as good as they were in WBC 49, if not better

First, we can be clear that Leonardo Harrison is one of the top players in this tournament. The best? Probably not. But he can't be too far off, the guy, through three classic runs, has notched 22 home runs, with 8 each in WBC 50 and 44 and 9 in WBC 49. With that in mind, he's a playmaker at shortstop with the athleticism and awareness to consistently make plays. But you knew that already. Harrison, and the team's starting catcher, Philip Lux, are known quantities. We know what we're getting, and that's excellent baseball. These two are the straw that stirs the drink here. Well, in terms of our position players, that is.

The rest of the crew? Tommy Verona, Eric Schmidt, and Parker Majors are big contributors and are most certainly the best three pitchers on the roster. All three play most of their baseball outside the country due to, well, the prospect of getting paid, but they've generously decided to lend their talents to Ranoria on the international field. And thank god. Because we don't know where we'd be without them. Not to dog on John Stallone, Sylvester Wayne, or Erin Phelps, because they're some of the best pitchers in the country, but they're just barely able to hang in there with the level of competition that the Classic breeds. Verona, in particular, seems to have explosives somewhere in his arm, and has consistently been a force from the mound. The pitcher lost just one start in the group stage before dropping another contest to the Sherpas, and of course he's going to get the start against Newmanistan. If he can help take that opening matchup, it may give us the momentum we need to make a push for winning yet another round in the knockouts.

So, look, Leonardo Harrison at least held up one end of his by now infamous guarantee, we won a series in the knockout stages. If this doesn't go as planned, that's okay, we at least proved that, even against the best of the world, we can play ball. Everything from here on out is just bonus. We had a puncher's chance against the reigning champions, and that was just enough. But we have a chance in hell, if that, against Newmanistan.

by **Nova Anglicana** » Tue Nov 24, 2020 1:25 pm

Qusmair Stadium, New Lakeland, Cassadaigua

Following the Nova Anglicana Lions' 8-6, 10 inning, victory over Daskel in game 5 of the Round of 32, manager Mark Singleton, bench coach Casey Cain, pitching coach Nick Berry, and bullpen coach Toby Meyer sat in the locker room, well after the players had left and the requisite press conference had finished.

Singleton spoke first, "Gentlemen, I've called you here today to discuss our pitching strategy going forward. How did we feel about the Jackson-Gantt experiment in game 5?"

Berry replied, "Well, it didn't turn out to be as innovative as all that. Hank pitched a good six innings, then we brought in Rocky to try to close things out, but that didn't exactly go as planned. Then Zach s**t the bed, if you don't mind me saying. We've got to get better pitching in this next series, especially from the bullpen."

Meyer looked indignant. "See here now, the bullpen's given up 12 runs in five games, that's only about two and half runs per game. Yeah, it's not good, but the starters allowed 21 runs. Cunningham f*cked up game 3 for us, and it's not like Boyd pitched super well either. Five runs in five innings. I mean, we won the game, so all's well and good, but still..."

Cain rapped his knuckles loudly on the table they were all sitting around. "Arguin' isn't going to get us anywhere. The pitching stunk in this series. Cory pitched well in game two, and Hank pitched well in game five, but that's about it in terms of good starts, and the bullpen wasn't much better. Thirty-three runs in five games is not going to cut it. We're not going to survive against South Newlandia with that kind of pitching. Now, I suggest we all shut up and let Mark tell us about what we're going to change."

Singleton cleared his throat. "Thanks, Casey. The way I see it, Daskel didn't hit a bunch of homers and whack it all over the park. They took advantage of the big park we were playing in and used speed and precision to get a bunch of singles and doubles to score all of those runs. That's the kind of team they are. We clearly either weren't prepared or didn't adjust. From the scouting report on South Newlandia, their shortstop, Drum, and their first baseman, King, are the biggest power threats. Everyone else is contact. That means more Daskel-type hitters. So what do we do with our practice day?"

"From a pitching standpoint, velocity alone isn't going to cut it," volunteered Berry. "Good international hitters, especially contact ones, can put good wood on balls that are fast but straight. They aren't going to strike out a lot, so making them make weak contact is going to be the key."

"Sounds like a steady diet of off-speed," said Meyer. "I'll work with the bullpen guys on extra breaking balls and making sure they can hit their spots with different pitches. Wouldn't be a bad idea to get guys to work on their two-seamers or cutters if they have 'em."

Singleton nodded. "Defensive positioning is also going to be critical. I'll make sure that the scouting guys get reports to pitchers and fielders so they know these South Newlandians' tendencies and where to position themselves. Peak n' Break is big, just like this stadium, so we need them to cover a lot of ground. Casey, I want you to work with the catchers and fielders so that the guys in the field know what pitches are coming, so they can set themselves up for the most likely outcome."

Cain bobbed his head in agreement. "You got it, Mark. I'm also going to work the umps early. If we can get them to give us an extra strike here and there on the corners, it makes the Elephants' job that much more difficult and they have to start taking swings just to protect the plate. Those aren't good contact swings."

"Thank you, gentlemen, now on to the next question at hand," said Singleton. "The rotation for the Round of 16. We have everyone lined up to start on regular rest in the same way that we did in the first series. Do we want to change that after the first round?"

Berry responded quickly, "At least for the first two games, not at all. Erik's earned the right to be #1, and I don't think our best move is to replace him, even after he didn't pitch that well in game one. He still needs confidence at times, and keeping him at #1 would be a good way to show that. Plus, he's got so many types of looks he can show South Newlandia that he's probably our best guy for inducing weak contact."

Cain spoke next. "That would be my recommendation too. Erik's a good pitcher, and he needs this first start. Keep Cory #2, and Dan #3. Cory pitched well, so he's #2, and Dan keeps the left-right parade going so they don't get too used to one look. Now for the #4 spot, I might have some thoughts about bumping Hank up there for that one."

Meyer chimed in, "That's probably best. Going forward, against the best teams, we need our four best starters going round the clock. Rex is good, but he's had a couple of blowups, and it wouldn't hurt him to go back into the bullpen for a bit. Jackson's not cut out to be a reliever, so using him in that way would be a waste. Having Boyd and Gantt in the bullpen is two weapons that can pitch multiple innings with great stuff."

Singleton put his hand to his chin. "So Russell, Sharpe, Cunningham, Jackson? Left-right-left-right, and Russell again if it goes to game five. Gantt and Boyd as firemen, having two means we don't have to worry about wasting them, then mix and match as necessary and save Spencer for extra innings or if we're really behind. Our four best starters, a stable of relievers ready at a moment's notice, and better defensive positioning, co-ordination, and training. That's our 'beat South Newlandia strategy'. Sound good to everyone?"

Everyone nodded. Singleton hoped it would be enough. This team was as talented as any team, but you just couldn't help feeling that the Elephants were due. They'd barely survived Daskel, and you couldn't avoid the giant-killers forever.

by **Ko-oren** » Tue Nov 24, 2020 2:44 pm

The massive field of 32 in the WBC knockouts has been slimmed down to 16 as the eight series were concluded in game five. These include Zwangzug's surprising deep series versus Chromatika (#2 versus #31), Nova Anglicana's trouble with Daskel (#3 versus #30), and Cassadaigua's squeaking past Kriegiersien (#4 versus #29). Only two series finished with an upset (lower seed beating the higher seed): Tikariot had the jump on Kohnhead, and Quebec dispatched Liventia in four games. Northwestern Atlantian Oceania is still going strong: Quebec next runs into Banija, while Ko-oren are up against TJUN-ia. Our upcoming opponents took four games to beat West Phoenicia, starting out 2-0, dropping a game, and then shutting out the Phoenicians in the final game of the series. TJUN-ia recorded an unimpressive 1-0 win, seen by some members of the Ko-orenite squad on their recently acquired day off.

The Islanders, still in dispute over their nickname, won three straight to knock out Indusse. The final game ended 5-1. Figueredo was shaky at best, relying on the infield to correct his mistakes. He allowed six walks in four innings, and leaked four hits beyond that - but in the end, every runner was stopped at some point, except one. A home run to start the fourth inning put Indusse's only point on the board. In the meantime, Ko-oren was ahead 2-1 via a lot of pressure on four straight at-bats, stretching the infielders thin by forcing them to make a choice between putting out runners, stopping steals, and still watching the ball. You can't look at the ball, at the runner ahead of you, and the runner behind you simultaneously, and still be expected to perform well. After the fifth inning, with the starter replaced, Indusse went back to their issues, again allowing two runs. It never was going to be a very high scoring game, but the difference in power was noticeable anyway.

Defensively, the entire team excelled in the entire series. Jabe was the weakest starter in terms of stats: he allowed two runs via shoddy pitching but otherwise kept it together. Figueredo was, as mentioned, streaky but had some moments. Brands was the other starter, and was tremendous and dominant - he was truly in charge of this game together with Berganza as catcher. This aspect will have to improve. Fielding is what this team has always been best at, and continues to be great, but starting pitchers have not been impressive over the last two classics. Relief pitching has been much better - a direct result of new and improved coaching - and so the starters should be able to develop similarly across a classic or so.

Starting against TJUN-ia will be Gavreau, then Matsuda, then looping back around to Brands, and Figueredo and Jabe if needed. The Jaguars are on their best run ever already by winning a series. We can expect them to be hungry and want more as a team on the rise.

by **Banija** » Tue Nov 24, 2020 3:24 pm

Round of 16 Pitching Preview- pitching duels are in order when Banija take on the Royal Kingdom of Quebec in Victoriaville

Suntukung Kandeh throwing a pitch in Banija's Round of 32 series against the Greater Nordics

VICTORIAVILLE, CASSADAIGUA- We won in the Round of 32, three games to 1 against the Greater Nordics. And Quebec put Liventia away in the same amount of games. Now, the two Commonwealth members will meet up in what is bound to be a charged, close, and exciting series. There is so much on the line- a trip to the quarterfinals. Bragging rights between two rivals. And a chance to continue on in the Golden edition of the World Baseball Classic, while the losing team sits at home with an early elimination.

Both teams place heavy emphasis on their starting pitching. Neither manager buys much into new age analytics and sabremetrics- it's going to be much more of an old school baseball game. Forget new age concepts like openers, we're gonna have both starters throwing 105-110 pitches a night, almost every night, unless someone of course gets blasted off the mound. Here, we'll compare the all-important pitching matchups for Games 1 and 2.

Game 1- Duta Condé(R) v. Jo Seung-Geon(L)

Both aces are expected to take the mound in Game 1. Jo Seung-Geon, the Quebecois ace, taking on Duta Condé, the Banijan ace. Both pitchers are superstar pitchers at this point in their careers, looking to help lead their staffs, and their teams, to the next level. Duta Condé is known in Banijan circles as a big game phenom. In WBC 46 and 47, he pitched like an absolute ace. In the knockout stages of both tournaments combined(where Banija earned a bronze medal and a gold medal, respectively), he was Banija's best pitcher. In those games, he was 4-1 over 7 starts, with a 2.73 ERA. It got him known as a big game pitcher, because those all came in important spots, pitching in pivotal game 3s. Down 2-0 against the Appalachian Nation, season on the line? Condé gunned em down. Elimination games where Banija could put away their opponents? He did that in the quarterfinals and semifinals of WBC 47 as well.

He is the trusted pitcher who Banija will go to for big games. It's a strategy that makes sense- give your best players the most playing time. And while he had a rocky Game 1 against the Greater Nordics, he's had enough performances to have earned the manager's trust. On the opposite side, of course, is Jo Seung-Geon. He is one of those rare breeds of southpaws- a lefty who can bring the heat. Standing in at 6'5 and a half, he can hit 100 mph. How many left handed starters can regularly hit triple digits? Could probably count it on your hands. But he is one of them. And his last start was dominant as well, an 112 pitch complete game victory over Liventia in Game 1 of that series, allowed no earned runs.

Both pitchers, with the added pressure of this being the Round of 16, and the other added pressure of this being a Commonwealth opponent, are going to have to step their games up. They are going to want to dictate the pace. Neither starter will be pulled early- both have proven themselves enough in their careers to be given a long leash in a Game 1. Expect a lot of heat, and expect both pitchers to try and keep the game moving. There won't be many runs- but both teams will probably have to play small ball in the rare opportunities they get baserunners to manufacture runs.

Game 2- Suntukung Kandeh(L) v. Nadine Seo(R- Sidearm)

If you're a fan of great pitching, this series is going to be one to watch. This one is also a heavyweight battle between two excellent starters. Suntukung Kandeh, the lefty, taking on Nadine Seo, the side armer. Kandeh is a veteran starter, this being his fifth Classic as a member of the roster. He's got a ring, like the man above. He knows what it takes to win at this level. And with more responsibility asked of him, he's stepped up. Look at how he stepped up in the last series, against the Greater Nordics. Banija's bullpen getting torn apart in Game 1, Banijans desperately needing a long start. How did he respond? 6 and 2/3s innings, 2 earned runs, only one base on balls, and seven strikeouts. The exactly type of performance you want from a front end rotation starter.

Nadine Seo did struggle against Liventia, but of course it's only one start. She's a sidearm pitcher- not something that you see every day in the WBBL. In fact, not something that you see at all in the WBBL. It's a tough arm angle to try to hit. We spoke to Banija's hitting coach, Baluta Colley, about that. "Nadine Seo's arm angle makes her a tough pitcher to try and hit. She's something so different- it's not something you are used to seeing. You have to spend a lot of time studying her arm angle when you scout and watch film, which of course takes away from our time studying the other pitchers. She's going to give us fits, she'll give anyone fits. Still- we've got Kandeh on the mound. We don't need to score 9 runs. We won't have a ton of opportunities, but we have to take advantage of the ones that we do get."

Bullpens

Of course, when you have closer pitching duels, bullpens will play a role. Neither team will put a FFR and have a straight up bullpen game- no, neither manager would. But the ability to go into the bullpen and have guys who can step in and close the door on the opponents, even if they are inheriting runners, is such a huge advantage. And, of course, closing out a game late. Having people who can rely upon to pitch the 8th and 9th innings are huge. We're sure the relievers will play a major determining role in this series.

Let's go to the very back of the Quebecois bullpen- Alexandre Farias. Once he gets the ball in his hand, the game is as good as over. Seriously- he's pitched 14 innings, and he hasn't allowed a single run during the entire classic. He notched back to back saves against Liventia, in Games 3 and 4, showing that he can close out games under the pressure of the bright lights of the knockout stages. When you have a weapon like that at your disposal, you have to use them. We'll see how he's used in this series. Will he just be in the 9th? Or will the Quebecois manager try to stretch him, bring him in for the four or five or even a six out save? He's young, only 24- the manager might call on him in that way.

Quebec's starters are basically all aces. Their closer has probably been the best reliever in the tournament thus far, out of any team. But getting the ball from the starter to the closer is where they'll face trouble. That's where you gotta get em. If you can be patient throughout the game and inflate pitch counts, the higher likelihood Quebec will have to stumble through their middle relievers to get to their superstar closer. And that's where Banija can pounce. Both of their setup men have ERAs over 4 during this classic, with Lara Yoon having a particularly alarming ERA of 7.04. Those 8th inning pitchers have struggled for Quebec- which is why the question of how many outs can you ask Alexandre Farias to get will truly loom large over this series.

And now, let's go to the Banijan bullpen. 5 of our 7 relievers are making their first ever appearance in a World Baseball Classic at this tournament. But a lot of them have stepped up. But the middle relievers, once again, can have some issues. You've got to get the ball to the back end of the bullpen, and Kakay always prefers getting from the starter all the way to the setup man, Kujabi. You can't always do that, though. But it's the playoffs.

Ousman Kakay was coy on when he was asked whether or not Kujabi and Kinte could both be asked to pitch more than one inning. "Look, our preferred is to have Kujabi pitch the 8th and Kinte pitch the 9th, if possible." Kakay told reporters. "But you do whatever the game situation demands of you. Kujabi and Kinte have both expressed to me that they are willing to do whatever it takes, whether it means logging extra innings, to help the team win. It's the exact type of attitude that I love to have from all my players. We won't broadcast our strategy, of course, but we're willing to pull out all the stops."

And there you have it. The pitching preview for one of the most highly anticipated Round of 16 matchups, where TV ratings on both sides are expected to be through the roof because of the opponent. Banija v. The Royal Kingdom of Quebec. Winner will reach the Quarterfinal, and indisputably claim the mantle of best baseball team in the Quebecois Commonwealth. Loser will go home, wondering what might have been. Who will triumph?

by **Newmanistan** » Tue Nov 24, 2020 3:36 pm

THE ROCKET REPORT

ROCKETS NOT LOOKING AHEAD

By Taylor Larson,

The round of sixteen will be underway shortly, and for the top-seed Rockets of Newmanistan, that means a trip to New Lakeland at Qusmair Stadium to play the Krauts of Ranoria. So much has gone right for the sky blue ever since the World Baseball Classic began, with a 26-4 record during the group stage, which is probably our highest winning percentage since the tournament went to the extended format of having a series. It could have been even better, but a 1-2 hiccup in the final three games made the most cynical fans of the team begin to talk. Most of the criticism is based upon their feeling that we should have fired manager Jessica Hedstrom after the premature loss to Hapilopper in the playoffs. When Hapilopper went on to the finals against The Sherpa Empire, it served as reprieve to Hedstrom. Speaking of The Sherpa Empire, that could have been our opponent right now, however the Krauts had other ideas.

Sometimes a team will have a let down after winning a title, and when I return to my memory lane series for World Baseball Classic 11, you will see that the Rockets were not immune to that, either. The Sherpa Empire played decently, but not to a championship level, and when they failed to win their group, they were not positioned well against Ranoria, a team that played much better in the second half than they had in the first half of the group stage. The series went five, and the Krauts ended up advancing.

Ranoria seems to know they are in tough against Newmanistan, as a source labeled their chance of eliminating us to “a chance in hell”. Well, if they thought they were going to catch the Rockets off their game and looking past them, that is not the case. Though with that prognostication, they seem to realise what we are capable of doing. This is a team that is hungry to avenge the premature exit from the last Classic, and Jessica Hedstrom knows that if it were to happen again, she might not get vindicated again by how far the team that eliminated us ends up going. The fans are also hungry for a title, they know we have won six titles, and that is great, but this is the longest stretch now of Newmanistanian baseball, where we have actively been participating, that we have gone since we have won a title. Foreigners, think of teams in your domestic league, or any baseball league you can think of. That league has that one championship studded team, probably. Think of how the fans of that team get when it has been too long, in their eyes, since they won a championship. That is what many Rockets fans are now feeling. World Baseball Classic 43 was a long time ago, now. Sure, others have gone longer, but our fanbase does not care. It is too long. Losing now? The axe should fall on Hedstrom and probably many others.

One of the reasons that people say for our not winning another title is that we never truly replaced Courtney Duvall. All of the great Rockets teams had that pitcher that opposing teams either feared or recognized as a tremendous task that they would undertake. We had it with Stacey Keisler, and the days of Jessica Brasfield. For a little while Hannah Lee was that pitcher, but Hannah was never quite like one of them. Then, once Hannah moved on from the team, we have been looking for that replacement. It has not happened. The ace of the staff now is Kelsie Carmichael, a 27-year old who has been very good year after year. However, she does not intimidate anyone at this level. After Kelsie and Paige Norwood (who’s been inconsistent), we have three first time young pitchers. It will likely be one of them that steps up to be that great one, and at the moment, you can see the potential that they have. Megan Reardon, Brianna Fitch, and Julia Donaldson are 24, 24, and 23. They were put here over other veterans with the hope that they would provide a jolt to this team. So far, they get a giant “A”.

The offense has been getting it done, with the aggressive base stealing at the top of the other from Brooke Sauter and Jenna Schuster, to the excellent performance of the middle of the lineup. The results have been there in a big way, consistently, since the start of the tournament. The team has chemistry and knows their mission, and not one of them is thinking about the fact that it could be Hapilopper that we played in the quarterfinals. Probably because they have a tough series themselves, against Hampton Island, and if you read my personal predictions, you know I am calling for a Hampton Island win there. Brianne is going with Hapilopper. The players would prefer to see one of them play us, and not play Ranoria.

Julia Donaldson gets the ball for game 1, and then it goes back to the top of the rotation. Everyone has pitched so well that there is no reason to change any of that up.

by **Zwangzug** » Tue Nov 24, 2020 4:17 pm

Bassabook had a reputation of being one of the more conservative cities in Zwangzug, but so far, Alfred and Buck hadn't seen anything too out of place. The nearest the star had come to a baby was actually a pair of twins, Connie and Tyler, both of whom had been gifted matching choo-choo onesies. The baby clothes were not particularly gender-specific, Alfred noted; they seemed to be distinguished mostly by the garish patterns of their socks (which weren't very necessary on top of the onesies), and the fact that Connie tended to nap with her right fist curled up beneath her neck, Tyler with his left. Clearly they would platoon someday.

They prepared to travel to Nuel, but outside Logan Junction, were accosted by a strange protest. Perhaps out of environmental concerns, the advocate for something-or-other had filled one small board with very small text, charts, and graphics, which meant that in order to follow her argument, you had to get pretty close, by which time she assumed you actually cared and began rambling.

"...incontrovertible evidence out of Tikariot suggests that Olympic softballs have gained sentience and are advocating for their rights," she insisted.

"So...are we supposed to help them, or something? How do you even do that," said Buck.

"Before we can tackle these questions, we must ask; what forces contribute to the size-separation of softballs?"

"People who don't like wearing gloves?" mentioned one passerby.

"Well, that too," muttered the protestor. "But!" She jabbed her finger awkwardly at a stylized Olympic estoile that had been copy-pasted poorly from a Krytenian football website. "The sex-separation of men's baseball and a parallel women's softball competition is one of the many ways in which the modern Olympic movement--"

"What about Aeropag IV?" someone else challenged.

"Aha!" She pointed to a busy scatterplot. "Kristin Petzar's time at the helm of the Zwangzug Olympic bureaucracy was marked by an investment in sports, such as the Quaggas, that tended to be--"

"Maybe we should get going," said Alfred.

"--the Paripana hosts admitted that the extreme similarities in sports are probably cause for--"

"Who even told you this anyway?" someone said. "A ball? You're not worried about what the ball wants?"

"--protests against the social structure in Cassadaigua, which--" She was now indicating a map, with the Grande Mountain region highlighted in bright pink.

"Too bad we're missing the slideshow," Alfred said. "I'd have liked to see the version of this with exciting animations and fades between slides."

"--while the dangers of 'making weight' in combat sports are well-known, less attention--"

"What?" Buck asked.

"--noble attempts to depoliticize the process have instead stagnated in--"

"I forgot you don't do modern technology. Maybe for the best in this case."

"--the jargon 'cowhide' representing the inherent human-centric--"

"Yeah," said Buck, and they continued towards the ICE11 platform.

by **Tikariot** » Tue Nov 24, 2020 4:19 pm

Part 1
Part 2
Part 3
Part 4
Part 5
Part 6
Part 7
Part 8
Part 9

*sigh* Back on the shelf. And I heard something about babysitting again. I do not like this. I don't like shelf, even though I still maintain that it's better than dirt or garbage, and I very absolutely most definiteliest don't like the thought of babysitting. If I have to see - that - one more time, I'm quitting.

Yes, I know I can't move or talk to people apparently or anything, Einstein, figure of speech, ok? Oh, I seem a little irritated? How would you feel, if you had gone through all of this? Hm? Tell me! Tell me now or--

Hollow threat. I know. But it was supposed to-- GOOD CORK!! What was that? Glass, a lot of glass! And breaking! That's not good! I don't like this. Before you can say anything, yes, I am aware that I am not liking a lot of things right now, but now is not the time. I hear people. But it's not my humans. And why would they break so much glass?

Oh no! I heard about this when they were watching TV the other night, B&E, breakfast and entering. Wait, not breakfast. Breaking! Duh, they broke glass, of course it had to be breaking, silly me. OK, ball, keep calm, do not alert them to your presence. [pretends to whistle]

AAH! I'M BLIND! Get that light out of my face! No, put me down! PUT - ME - DOWN! I just got this family! Sure, they traumatized me for life, but I'm seeing this psycho tiger, uh, psychiatrist! I can't just quit the therapy! So be a good burglar and put me back down, ok?

*thud* That worked well. Back into a bag. Great. I hear police aaand they're running. *thud* OW! Can you pay attention to that bag? OW! Are you hitting stuff on purpose or what? *thud* You guys are lucky softballs don't bruise easily! That could seriously decrease my value!

OK, we're driving. And not driving anymore. Car doors. What was that? We drove for like a minute!

[hours later]

This is the end of the world as we knoooow it. Yes, still here. Still in a bag, still in the car, still bored. Ooooh, car door! Ignition! And off we go. Why am I excited? Get it together, ball, you're not on vacation here! It's not like your trip from the factory to the stadium.

[half an hour later]

Oh? Are we at our destination? Will I meet my new humans? Ooh, someone got my bag! Now let's get ready to pounce, ok?

Whoaaaah! [falls out of upside down bag] This is my chance! Rolling, rolling, rolling... And now the realization that I am both short and have no arms. Damn you, door!

Hello there, old man, who are you? Oh, the guy the robbers brought their loot to. Yeah, yeah, I'm just another-- wait, what did you say? Why yes, I AM an Olympic softball! Finally someone who pays attention to things! Where are you bringing me? Oh wow, a whole glass case full of balls! IBS, WBC, ISM - what is ISM? Who cares. Hi guys! Nice to meet you all, I'm new here. Ah, not the talkative kind again, are ya, Ugh.

[an hour after door closing]

Can you shut up already? I'm trying to sleep here. How rude-- Waaaait a moment! Who is talking? Hello? HELLO? OK, this is officially creepy now...

AAAAAAAH!

[to be continued]

by **South Newlandia** » Tue Nov 24, 2020 5:09 pm

Elephants make it through!

Game five in a Best-of-three is always especially important. Both of the two competing teams, the Tigers and the Elephants, were going to give it their all. South Newlandia could rely on their pitching ace, Jacob Conroy, to play on full rest. The Tigers would have an opener playing, Edward Zhuang. That was an experiment the Tigers might not repeat, as they put themselves in a two-run whole early on, with Ventura scoring in the first and White in the second, thanks to Zhunang struggling for outs. The Tigers went on with a bunch of different pitchers throughout the game. That’s not, meanwhile, what the Elephants were doing. They knew that a well-rested Conroy could go a complete game without much trouble. He’d done it three times in the group stage, without issue, against a top-20 team. However, in the 4th, he got himself into a little bit of trouble when he conceded a run to Noah Slater after he had blasted a triple to Left Field earlier. That was certainly no cause for alarm; the Elephants were still leading by one. As the game went on, both sides’ pitchers were able to silence the opposing batters. That was until the bottom of the seventh, when the Elephants blew the game wide open. After Mike Larsen had gotten a walk with one man already out, Fabio Ventura stepped up to the plate. On a 2-1 count, he hit a fastball up the middle, right over Center Field, and just over the edge. South Newlandia had taken a three-run lead with only six outs to make. Conroy got them through the first three, and while the Elephants couldn’t increase the lead in the eighth, everyone was sure that Conroy would have this. With just three outs to make, Gabriel Acosta stepped up into the batter’s box to start the top of the ninth. He got struck out without big problems for Conroy. Noah Slater was next, and the Designated Hitter and Conroy worked up to a 2-2 count. A fastball up the middle was brilliantly taken by Slater, and the Tiger sent the ball into the upper deck. The solo-homer cut the deficit to just two runs. Tyson Long was next, one of the best hitters for the Tigers in this series. He managed to sneak in a clutch hit right over second to get to first base. With that, potentially tying runs were now at the plate. Emery Wu was struck out easily, and Liam Desjardins was stepping on. Liam and Conroy had battled multiple times already on that day, and this at-bat was no different. Conroy had brought him to a 2-1 count when Desjardins popped one ball up high on the field. Being the potentially tie-ing run, this was crucial. It was going to land right between Ventura and Zimmerman, neither of them would be able to catch it comfortably. The fast Ventura was going to catch it, and managed to dive to catch it to end the inning, game, and series.
The Elephants had done it, and the players were celebrating on the field, amazed at what they’d done. Beating a 5-time WBC champion, even if they’d just returned, was no small achievement. Their reward would be a Round of 16 date with Nova Anglicana. The champions from the first cycle South Newlandia ever entered are looking hot at the moment, with the third seed and second highest ranking, and will certainly be the favourite to take this series. On the other hand, they just had to take a five-game series too, against Daskel, another team with many contact hitters, and another team that is recently rising. On top of that, the only ever game between South Newlandia and Nova Anglicana ended in a win for the Elephants.
Looking at the matchup for game one, both sides will have a left-handed pitcher out there in game one. Ryan Hunter, who played convincingly against the Tigers in game one, will take the ball for the Elephants, and Erik Russell will get the start for the Lions. Game two will see an interesting decision for Bolton; will he bring out Kramer again after that game two against the Tigers? The series in Peak'N'Break Stadium in Grande Mountain is definitly going to be an interesting one.
The Elephants will certainly never give up against the Lions, but the second big cat in a row might just be too big for them.

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