Disclaimers:- Players are South Newlandian unless otherwise stated.
- The Evan Masorka is the LPB version of the Cy Young.
- Scoring rates are lower in the LPB, with roughly 10% fewer runs than in the MLB (because our ball isn’t juiced). Keep this in mind when reading about stats.
- If you’re interested in seeing the entire list of results for your team, I do have that. Just dm me and I’ll send you a copy, but across the LPB, it’s 1920 total regular season games, which I thought to be a little much to feature here in its entirety.
- This entire project could not possibly have been run without Llama. I produced the words and the graphics on your screen right now, but Llama was helping me lay the background foundation to make this possible at all. Please do grade my works accordingly.South Newlandian LeagueResult Recap – Part 4SNL NorthP Pld W L RF RA RD Win %
1 Elephant Valley Homers 160 90 70 713 624 +89 0.562
2 Masmow Dragons 160 88 72 779 662 +117 0.550
3 Ruditown Dachshunds 160 87 73 717 628 +89 0.544
4 Elephant Valley United 160 85 75 700 644 +56 0.531
Elephant Valley HomersLast seasons:Season 2: 49-23, 1st in NW, lost in conference round (2-4 Dragons)
Season 3: 48-24, 1st in NW, lost in divisional round (2-3 Dachshunds)
Season 4: 38-34, 3rd in NW, missed playoffs
Season 5: 38-34, 3rd in NW, missed playoffs
Roster: Coach: Tanya Ericsson, 59, Super-Llamaland
SP: Darien Rodriguez, 31, Drawkland
SP: Jack Beard, 23
SP: Myron Pacheco, 22 (Rookie)
RP: Bert Hoosier, 24
RP: Kyle Fang, 30, Super-Llamaland
C: Horace Choo, 32, Quebec and Shingoryeo
1B: Adam King, 28
2B: Val Thornton, 22 (Rookie)
SS: Alisen Moyamoto, 28, Chromatika
3B: Albert Vaughn, 26, Super-Llamaland
LF: Michael Kennedy, 21, Super-Llamaland (Rookie)
CF: Shawn Zimmerman, 24
RF: Fabio Ventura, 30
ExpectationsComing off of two good seasons without a playoff appearance and with the third coach in as many seasons, the Homers were tired of waiting. They knew their window around Ventura and King was slowly closing, and they were going to do just about everything to win the North in this season. Everyone expected the pitching staff to be slightly shaky around Rodriguez, but the bullpen had two lockdown elite players, and the batting was going to be among the best in the league.
Recap: OverviewThe Homers won 90 games and won the North. It was an extremely close race – the entire division was within five games, it was everyone’s game heading into the final stretch, but the Homers had been in the lead for a while. Since game 137, they had been in the lead of the SNL North, but they’d been good across the year. They stood 45-35 at the All-Star break, tied for first with the Dragons at the time, but they managed to keep their pace and win out the extremely difficult and competitive division. They were by far the last division winner to clinch their playoff spot, taking until game 157, but a win there at home against the Walstreim Stingrays (6-5) propelled them to their first playoff appearance since their first-round exit against the Dachshunds three seasons ago.
Recap: Pitchers The expectation of pretty much everyone was that the Homers would beat opposing teams with their awesome batting. That was not the case. The Homers only allowed 624 runs across the season, a mark only beaten by two teams. Darien Rodriguez had a career year, finishing with an ERA of 2.46 with a 19-6 record, starting in 32 games. He also collected 10.3 strikeouts per game. Jack Beard also contributed a sub-3 ERA, while second-round rookie Myron Pacheco kept an ERA under 4. In addition to that, the bullpen played very well. Bert Hoosier finished with 31 saves across 36 opportunities, and Kyle Fang finished with an ERA of 2.28 on the season. Despite lacking contributions from the rest of the pen, this 1-2 punch allowed the Homers to win lots of close games. According to run differential, the Homers should have had a 91-69 record.
Recap: FieldersThe extremely good batting was quite as good as expected, but still produced 713 total runs, 10th across the LPB, but worst among division winners. To be fair, they had to face some of the toughest competition out there. Horace Choo had a mediocre year with the bat, Adam King only managed 28 Home Runs, Alisen Moyamoto had a relatively decent year with the bat as well, slashing .276/.560/.876; which was the one of the best marks for shortstops this season. Additionally, Moyamoto led the league in D-War, accumulating 3.4, which brought her to the top total WAR mark across the SNL. Moyamoto is one of the reasons why the pitching staff looked so good all season. Nearly all the pitchers had a higher FIP than ERA, because Moyamoto led the league in putouts and turned double plays. Shawn Zimmerman and Fabio Ventura were the two other big contributors, as expected, but the clearly best player on the team was Moyamoto. The efforts of rookie Val Thornton are also not to be underestimated; she slashed an above-league average .240/.366/.634 along with playing very well with Moyamoto defensively.
AwardsThere was no shortage of awards for the Homers this season. Darien Rodriguez and Alisen Moyamoto were the only two all-stars for them, but after heating up in the second half, Rodriguez finished top-10 in Evan Masorka voting, while Thornton was up in the top 5 of Rookie of the Year voting. More importantly, Zimmerman won a silver slugger, while Alisen Moyamoto cleaned house with the silver slugger, golden glove, and SNL Most Valuable Player awards – well deserved honors for the WBC champion, who, according to WAR, brought the Homers from last to first in the North.
The futureShort term, the Homers have made the SNLDS, and will play their first playoff games in three years. Long term, this team can continue to compete for a while. While the core of King, Ventura, Rodriguez, and Moyamoto is all above 28, they surely still have a few good years in them.
Masmow DragonsLast seasons:Season 2: 48-24, 1st in NE; lost in SNBL Final Series (2-5 Rhinos)
Season 3: 45-27; 1st in NE; lost in Divisional round (2-3 United)
Season 4: 47-25, 1st in NE; won SNBL Final Series (5-0 Blue Sox)
Season 5: 46-26, 1st in NE; lost in SNBL Final Series (3-5 Monarchs)
Roster: Coach: Jack Kingsman, 62
SP: Jay Kramer, 25
SP: Julia Donaldson, 27, Newmanistan
SP: Nico Cagliari, 21, Super-Llamaland (Rookie)
RP: Barnaby Butt, 28
RP: Justin Frazier, 30, Super-Llamaland
RP: Kerry Mercer, 32, Nova Anglicana
C: Bradley Jenkins, 28, Drawkland
1B: Gabriel Acosta, 29, Super-Llamaland
1B: Bucky Jiminez, 26, Super-Llamaland
2B: Len Pijpenbroek, 27, Ko-oren
SS: Jason Valbuena, 28, Super-Llamaland
LF: Daryl Dunlop, 29
CF: Marcia McMahon, 29, Super-Llamaland
RF: Denis Caamano, 28, Ko-oren
DH: George Webber, 33
ExpectationsThe Dragons are used to the playoffs. They’ve made three SNBL Finals in the last four years, including a championship, despite residing in a difficult division. Now, it got even harder, as they were shoved into what was basically the SNL Northwest, with three regular playoff teams already there. Nevertheless, the team of Kingsman was confident. The pitching was going to be led by the South Newlandian ace Kramer, with Julia Donaldson from Newmanistan the new star; the bullpen featured Frazier, setup man for the Tigers, and Butt, closer for the Elephants; and the lineup features stars all around, including but not limited to Acosta, Dunlop, Caamano and, of course, Lexi Burrows. The bookmakers had the Dragons as the third team overall and top of the SNL North for good reason.
Recap: OverviewAfter a good start to the season, standing 45-35 at the break, the Dragons slowed down a bit, being only 42-38 in the second half of the season. Finishing with 87 wins was good for the first wildcard in the SNL, but the season was dangerously close to spiralling out of control. They dropped to 62-52 at one point, getting caught up to by the Dachshunds due to a six-game losing streak including series against Xingcheng and at United and the Vipers. They immediately picked it back up, winning their next eight straight, including series against the Greens and at the Owls, Cosmos and Homers. Nevertheless, they struggled toward the end. With two games to play, they were tied for the second wildcard spot; but a series win at the Homers including a 14-3 demolition pushed them back up to the first wildcard spot.
Recap: PitchersThe Dragons surrendered 662 runs across the season, good for 10th in the LPB, but also worst across the SNL North. Kramer had a mediocre year with an ERA of 3.04, despite a 2.45 ERA in the first half of the season. He was one of the players, especially South Newlandian ones, who seemed to struggle with the increased workload. Julia Donaldson was better, getting an ERA of 2.83, but the entire rest of the pitchers were mediocre at best. Barnaby Butt led the league in blown saves, and Justin Frazier missed about 40 games with various small injuries in his throwing arm. Even when he played, his effectiveness was inconsistent. This led to the Dragons losing winnable games – they finished with five fewer wins than they were expected to have by their run differential, the most in the SNL.
Recap: FieldersThe batting was awesome, however. 779 total runs, despite facing some of the best competition in the league, stood as the 6th-best mark across the LPB. Of course, Acosta was a key contributor again, slashing .309/.559/.912 with 37 Homers, the most in the SNL; while Lexi Burrows managed to nearly reach all of those numbers at third base. Denis Caamano also eclipsed a .300 average, and his defensive contributions have to be mentioned as well.
AwardsThe Dragons had a couple of All-Stars, including Lexi Burrows and Denis Caamano, with Daryl Dunlop being the second Left Fielder. Despite getting no pitchers near the top of the awards, Denis Caamano won a Gold Glove, while Burrows won both the Silver Slugger and Gold Glove; the only player beside MVP Moyamoto to pull this off. Acosta, meanwhile, missed out on awards at the extremely competitive first base.
The futureThe Dragons will get to host the wildcard game. At home, they have decent chances to win it, but the path to a Championship seems to be an unlikely one.
Nevertheless, the Dragons can hope to compete in the future. All key contributors are still under 30, and they remain a very good team that will be able to improve further in the off-season.
Ruditown DachshundsLast seasons:Season 2: 29-43, 3rd in NW, missed playoffs
Season 3: 41-31, 3rd in NW, lost in conference round (2-4 United)
Season 4: 40-32, 2nd in NW, lost in conference round (2-4 Dragons)
Season 5: 46-26, 1st in NW, lost in conference round (2-4 Dragons)
Roster: Coach: Lee Bradley, 48, Nova Anglicana
SP: Brianna Fitch, 27, Newmanistan
SP: Gene Almac, 29, TJUN-ia
SP: Blake Robbins, 31
SP: Phil Dunn, 22
RP: Tori Fuller, 32, Newmanistan
RP: Erik McGuire, 30, Nova Anglicana
RP: Mario Small, 24
RP: Mark Robertson, 31, Nova Anglicana
C: Jean-Jacques Duplante, 32, Nova Anglicana
1B: Fred Hodgson, 25, Bollonich
2B: Samuel Winter, 30, Ethane
SS: Hannah Mitchell, 25, Newmanistan
SS: Alfredo Swanson, 31, Bollonich
3B: Angela Bengtsson, 22, Super-Llamaland (Rookie)
LF: Mason Bennett, 30, Ko-oren
CF: Rufus Salas, 22
RF: Pedro Moires, 32, TJUN-ia
RF: Payton Arias, 26, Bollonich
DH: Alain Gosselin, 31, Nova Anglicana
ExpectationsAfter their new coach, Lee Bradley, turned the Dachshunds into a competitive playoff team, they even won their old division for the first time in the most recent season. Despite this, they never represented the North in the Final Series, falling short at the final hurdle three consecutive times. Many experts believed that this could be the team that finally breaks the barrier; this is one of the most complete teams in the league. The pitching features two international stars in Fitch and Almac, the bullpen is spearheaded by Fuller, and the lineup features great players along the lines of Winter, Mitchell, Bennett and Moires; along with having some of the best depth of any LPB team.
Recap: OverviewEverything started out well for the Dachshunds. They were 37-22 early in the season, with a solid lead over the North. Then came a backbreaking stretch of eleven consecutive losses for the Dachshunds. They were against tough competition, sure, but when they met the same schedule again in the second half, they at least went 5-6 against the same teams. They dropped to third in the division, and they struggled to get back on their feet. 42-38 at the break, and they just barely got back to 15 more wins than losses at the end of the season. Nevertheless, they seemed to have at least recovered the playoff spot late in the season. With two to play, they were in sole control of the first wildcard spot, but losing a series at Elephant Valley United, they ended up only tied for the second spot. Neither of the losses at United were close – they were shut out in the game entirely – and would have to play the very first 161st game in LPB history to decide whether they would make the playoffs.
Recap: PitchersThe Dachshunds conceded only 628 runs all season. Only three teams in the entire league managed to outdo this. For the entire season, the pitching had been borderline untouchable, with Fitch, Almac and Robbins all managing an ERA under 3; the best pitching trio in the North. Fitch led the trio with an ERA of 2.33, the best in the SNL North. She also struck out 12.3 batters per game. The bullpen, meanwhile, was just about average. Fuller played a decent season at a 2.78 ERA, but McGuire, Small and Robertson all hovered around league average.
Recap: Fielders717 runs scored are good, but not comparable to the pitching; finishing 9th in the LPB. Still, a few players had exceptional seasons; Winter was great, Mitchell had elite stats for a shortstop as well. Along this, they were both very solid defensively; helping the pitching staff be as good as it was. Angela Bengtsson also had an extremely good rookie season, easily outpacing the average for third baseman with the bat. The outfield also shined; Bennett, Salas and Moires combined for more than 60 homers. Only at DH, the Dachshunds struggled.
AwardsStrangely, the Dachshunds hardly got any awards. Almac joined Fitch in the top ten of Evan Masorka voting, while Bengtsson was top five in Rookie of the Year voting. However, Bennett was the only gold glover on the team; and he was joined by Winter, Moires and Gosselin in the second team of the All-Star selection.
The futureThe Dachshunds will host game 161 due to their Head-to-Head record, but even if they win, a tough wildcard game in Masmow would follow; and even then, it would be a tough path in the playoffs.
With Robbins, Fuller, Winter, Bennett, Moires and Gosselin all above 30, the window may be slowly closing on the Dachshunds. The next generation around players like Bengtsson is only just growing, so if they don’t manage a deep run soon, it will only get more difficult in the future.
Elephant Valley UnitedLast seasons:Season 2: 37-35, 2nd in NW, lost in divisional round (2-3 Homers)
Season 3: 43-29, 2nd in NW, won SNBL Final Series (5-3 Flames)
Season 4: 41-31, 1st in NW, lost in divisional series (1-3 Dachshunds)
Season 5: 40-32, 2nd in NW, missed playoffs
Roster: Coach: Raymond McFadden, 50, Tikariot
SP: Hillary Angelou, 29, Chromatika
SP: Jacob Conroy, 29
SP: Mollie Lloyd, 21 (Rookie)
RP: Jang Hyo-Seung, 31, Quebec and Shingoryeo
RP: Marcel Adams, 31
RP: Connor Harris, 31, Brookstation
C: Hansel Eriksen, 19, Super-Llamaland (Rookie)
1B: Bronson Ghirardello, 28, Tikariot
2B: Igor White, 32
SS: Carlton Baines, 29, Tikariot
LF: Mac Jefferson, 24
CF: Harper Yumizuka, 25, Diarcesia
RF: Julian Breit, 20, Ranoria
ExpectationsElephant Valley United has been one of the better teams in South Newlandia ever since Raymond McFadden came to town. Despite good play and results, they only made it out of the first round of the playoffs once, and missed them entirely in the most recent season despite playing very well. Everyone expected the SNL North to be a tough division, and bookmakers had United as, by a small margin, worst team in the division. Nevertheless, Hillary Angelou is probably the best pitcher in the league, they got Conroy back, they had a solid bullpen, first overall pick Eriksen, along with Ghirardello, Baines, and Breit in the lineup.
Recap: OverviewUnited played a solid, above .500 season. Despite this, they were barely above .500 at the break, dropped below it for a decent amount of time, and were only brought up to 85 wins by a late-season surge when they were all but out of the playoffs. They struggled against the rest of their division, going .500 against them, but many of those were hard-fought wins that ultimately cost them in the games against weaker opponents. There were simply only so many play-off spots, and United lacked the overall productions and depth to get one.
Recap: PitchersHillary Angelou was the best pitcher in the SNL. With an ERA of 1.95, she led the league by a decent margin, striking out 12.6 batters a game. Hillary also had the lowest WHIP of qualified pitchers. Conroy had a good season too, finishing with an ERA of 2.45. The bullpen was average; Jang Hyo-Seung wasn’t the elite closer other teams had, but he was decent enough. Harris notably had the closest-to-average ERA of qualified pitchers (4.12). In total, United finished with 644 runs allowed, good for 5th in the LPB.
Recap: FieldersEriksen, the first-overall pick United made, was playing extremely well in his rookie season. Not only proved he to have a great connection with Angelou and Conroy, but he also picked up skills with the bat quickly, slashing .229/.402/.672 in his rookie season. Aside from that, the 700 total runs (12th in the LPB) United scored were mostly contributed to by Bronson Ghirardello and Carlton Baines; while the rest of the lineup largely struggled. White had a bad year, and young stud Breit was the only other notably good hitter.
AwardsHillary Angelou took home the Evan Masorka this season, with a sizable lead. She was joined in the top 10 by Jacob Conroy. In addition to this, Hansel Eriksen won the vote for Rookie of the Year with a slim lead. Angelou was the only all-star of the Elephant Valley United, although quite a few players fell just short.
The futureUnited will have to decide what they want. The two top pitchers are 29, the bullpen is getting up there, the best hitters are also slowly starting to age. They will have to decide whether they want to fight for a championship soon or decide to start a rebuild around their young stars in Breit in Eriksen.