World Baseball Classic 50- Everything (IC)

[Nova Anglicana]

Lions group stage review

The Nova Anglicana Lions have finished the group stage with a record of 24-6, good for the third seed in the playoffs. They trailed only the Zebras of Zwangzug (on run differential), and the incredibly strong Newmanistan Rockets, for whom playing .667 ball in their final six games was a significant downgrade. They finished 26-4, winning games at an unfathomable .867 clip. The Lions' record is what you would expect from the second best team (by rank) in the competition. To understand how the national baseball team has been doing, let's look at just one aspect of the Lions squad to get a feel for the group stage, the rotation.

#1 Cory Sharpe (6 starts): 2-2, 38.2 IP, 20 ER, 4.65 ERA
#2 Dan Cunningham (6 starts): 5-0, 41.2 IP, 16 ER, 3.46 ERA
#3 Erik Russell (6 starts): 4-0, 45.2 IP, 10 ER, 1.97 ERA
#4 Hank Jackson (5 starts): 3-2, 32.1 IP, 16 ER, 4.45 ERA
#5 Rex Boyd (5 starts): 4-1, 30.2 IP, 17 ER, 4.99 ERA
#6 Rocky Gantt (2 starts): 1-0, 15 IP, 2 ER, 1.20 ERA
Overall: 30 GS, 19-5, 204 IP, 81 ER, 3.57 ERA

Overall, the rotation has been fairly solid. 19 wins in 24 decisions is excellent (though win-loss records are an inefficient way to evaluate pitchers), the staff is averaging nearly seven innings per start, and the 3.57 ERA is pretty good. In a single game, that's a line of three earned runs in a little more than seven innings, a result you'd take every time. But when you dig deeper, you see how the individual pictures look.

Sharpe, the staff ace, has been up and down. He's had two good outings, an 8 IP, 3 ER effort in a game 11 win against the Sarian, and a 7 IP, 2 ER turn against Republic of Dixie in game 28. But his four other outings are pretty mediocre, with ERAs over 5 in each one. He's got some work to do before he recovers his form. Dan Cunningham is mostly the opposite. He had a bad start against United Hemand Insia in which he allowed five runs, and a five inning, four run, start against Republic of Dixie, but in every other start he has pitched at least seven innings and given up no more than two run. As for Erik Russell, he started out pitching incredibly well, including pitching more than nine no-hit innings against Republic of Dixie in game 8. He slowed down a little bit, but every single start has been a quality start (6 IP, 3 ER or better) and he has allowed two or fewer runs in five of his six starts. #4 starter Hank Jackson started out with a 4.1 IP, 6 ER stinker, but he has pitched pretty well in his last four starts, concluding with a complete-game, two-run effort against the United States of Devonta. The new #5 starter, Rex Boyd, who had been a multi-inning reliever on previous teams, has been mostly excellent, though his ERA doesn't indicate it. He has four starts where he's tossed 29 innings with a 2.48 ERA and 4-0 record, but his rotation-worst ERA is almost entirely due to getting battered for 8 runs in 1.2 IP in a game against United States of Devonta. Finally, Rocky Gantt, who has slotted into Rex Boyd's old role, made two spot starts, pitching well in both outings. His first start was against The Sarian, where he allowed two runs in six innings, but he dominated in his second start, pitching a complete game shutout with twelve strikeouts against UHI. He will head back into the bullpen for this playoff series, but don't be surprised if he makes another start between now and the (hopefully) finals.

The Lions will take on the #30 seed, 23rd-ranked Daskel, in their Round of 32 matchup. Daskel finished 18-12, winning their last game 10-0 over Oscioru to finish third in group four and earn their way into the playoffs as one of the six best wild card teams. The Lions have faced Daskel before, winning four of six games in the WBC 48 group stage against the then-unranked Daskies. The Lions will need to bring their A-game, as Daskel clearly won't roll over. They've fought hard to be here, and want to go headhunting in the Round of 32. The Lions will line up Erik Russell and Cory Sharpe to pitch the first two games of the series, presumably against Kojima Takeshi and Kanao Tōru. Dan Cunningham will start game three, and Rex Boyd will start game four if necessary. Manager Mark Singleton said he wanted to promote Russell for his excellent pitching in the group stage and also maintain a left-right balance, which is why we won't see Russell and Cunningham going back to back. Let's hope the Lions can put the Daskies to bed early, but don't be surprised if this series goes four or even five games.

[Hapilopper]

Ferguson Stadium, Rutland, Cassadaigua
Leading up to the first round of the World Baseball Classic 50 Playoffs: Hapilopper vs. Northwest Kalactin
“Guys, I don’t want ‘Wet Cell’ on my uniform next year. Quit calling me that!”

Jerome “Wet Cell” Hayden was still taking the needling from his teammates about jumping into Lake Eclipse with his cell phone in his pocket, and quite frankly, it was starting to get on his nerves. But it was all in good fun. The players of the Hapilopper National Baseball Team enjoyed poking fun at one another, so long as it didn’t go too far. And honestly, the team needed to stay loose as they prepared for the playoffs of the 50th World Baseball Classic. They were just one of 32 teams about to go on an odyssey that, they hoped, would end with them hoisting the WBC trophy at the end of the day.

Thankfully for Jerome and the rest of the starting position players, that three-game break did them a lot of good for rest. They flew to Cassadaigua ready to kick some ass and hopefully go one step further than they did during the last World Baseball Classic, where they went six games in the finals only to get topped by the Sherpa Empire. The Hap Thrashers had the highest of high expectations, and anything less than a championship would be a disappointment, much less a departure earlier than last year.

Their first opponents would be the team from Northwest Kalactin, a team that went 15-15 during the group stage of the World Baseball Classic and finished 2nd in Group 2, seven games behind Sarzonia. To the Haps, all they were was an obstacle, someone in the way of their goal of hoisting that trophy. Nothing against the Kalactins, but they were in Hapilopper’s way, and as a result, the Haps felt they had to roll through them with extreme prejudice.

Before the start of the playoffs, the HNBT pitching staff got together for a pre-playoffs meeting, to see just how to pitch to who. There were players such as Wendell Barkley, Adam Torres and Raymond Bailey that the pitchers were asked to study a little bit harder. Where could the pitchers pitch and how could they get the best Kalactin hitters to look like a bunch of idiots?

While the pitchers were reviewing game film and charting what they had seen, the position players were quite loose and relaxed. Almost too relaxed. A number of players were hazing Jerome Hayden still, while Jerome was starting to give it back.

“I mean, you do something silly, and you’re going to get a nickname for it,” Grant Bonney said. “I mean, look at Hot Sauce Gibbs. There’s got to be a story behind that name, right?”

Some of the players started looking at each other uneasily. The story of Hot Sauce Gibbs’ name was something that wasn’t often shared with people.

“Uh, Bonney, we don’t talk about that too much,” Leroy Hunnisett said. “I mean, I’ll get Hot Sauce to see if he wants to talk about it, because I’d rather have him tell the story than one of us.”

Leroy walked over to a room where the pitchers were holding a business-like meeting, going over each of the Kalactin players. The meeting, presided by pitching coach Curtis Skinner, was resoundingly professional. Pitchers were reviewing film and taking notes concerning which Kalactin hitter would probably mess up what pitch. It was standard operating procedure for the Hapilopper National Baseball Team’s pitching staff to hold these meetings as they prepared for their next opponents, so everything was going by the book. That is, until Leroy burst in.

“And if we pitch him on the inside corner, he’ll try to… Hunnisett, what the HELL are you doing?” Curtis said. “We’re trying to conduct a meeting here! Pitchers only!”

“I need to speak to Hot Sauce. It’s, uh, important,” Leroy said.

Hot Sauce, at the time trying to take notes on this specific Kalactin hitter, threw a pen up in the air and shook his head.

“Tell me, Hunnisett, what is more important at this time than this?” Hot Sauce said with frustration coating his voice.

“Grant Bonney wants to know how you got your name,” Leroy said, almost sheepishly.

Hot Sauce, and the rest of the pitching staff, could only give Leroy a deathly glare. They were in the midst of a massively important meeting to figure out how to handle the Kalactin hitters in this first round of the playoffs, and Leroy Hunnisett and Grant Bonney were curious about how Hot Sauce Gibbs got his nickname? Hot Sauce tried to figure out what to say. He shook his head, threw his hands up in the air and looked around the room, to find the pitchers start to look his way.

“Listen, Hunnisett…” Hot Sauce started to say. “You know what? God damn it. If he really wants to know, I’ll tell him after the meeting. But make sure he knows I don’t appreciate being interrupted.”

“Sure.”

Leroy walked back to a corner of the clubhouse where a group of position players, including Grant, were still congregated.

“Well? What’d he say?” Grant asked.

“Something about not interrupting a pre-series pitcher’s meeting,” Leroy said. “If Hot Sauce comes your way, first thing you need to do is apologize. Either that or buy him dinner.”

Grant looked at Leroy with a twinge of annoyance.

“Or, you know what? Buy both of us dinner,” Leroy said. “I’m not going to be a gofer for someone to ask questions for someone.”

“Dude, fuck you, alright?” Grant responded. “I was just curious. I didn’t ask you to go over to interrupt that meeting. You did that yourself, not me. If it was really that important, I would have asked Hot Sauce himself when he had a free moment.”

Obviously, there was some tension in the air as the first round of the playoffs loomed large. Leroy realized that he had been a little rude to his teammate, and apologized.

“Bonney, listen, man, I didn’t mean to be a dick,” Leroy said. “Just got a lot on my mind. Sorry.”

“I think we all do,” Grant said. “We got to win this, man.”

“I know.”

[Ranoria]

One Hell of a Hot Streak: Krauts Finish 10-1,
Knock off Greater Nordics in Final Matchup to Earn 2nd Rank in Group 7

Philip Lux is one of the best two players on this team, and probably one of the better players in this tournament

What. Just. Happened?

Ranoria had slogged its way to a 9-10 record through two thirds of the season. Even optimistically, it didn't seem that we were going anywhere. Even when the team went on a completely unprecedented tear that saw them potentially being seeded against Sarzonia, an almost certain first round exit, well, there wasn't a ton of optimism. After all, a matchup with TJUN-ia, who had essentially used us as a practice squad until this point, loomed. Right, then we beat them 5-3, an absolute miracle frankly, and that was that. Leonardo Harrison could be seen, after the game's conclusion, staring at the scoreboard and blinking his eyes, as if trying to clear away the illusion. Paul Verona was the key in that one, pitching in 7 innings and allowing just 2 runs through that span on a two-run homer. Fortunately, Philip Lux notched one himself the inning before, so that didn't exactly close the gap between the two squads.

And, with them out of the way, we brushed off one more win to get ready for a key matchup with the Greater Nordics, both teams having already secured a playoff nod. But with this win, the Krauts were finally in position to take an automatic group playoff bid, and thus a higher seed in the tournament. How did our squad respond? We headed onto their home turf, allowed one run in garbage time, ran up the score with a half dozen of our own, and went home.

Yeah, I have no idea what just happened. I know I was talking big game, 20 games and all, but once we got to 9-10, I didn't think we were making the knockout stages, much less managing to qualify based on our position in the group.

-Leonardo Harrison, at a post-game press conference before heading home to Ranoria

And honestly? We're with him. Look, objectively, things didn't look good, especially when you take a look at how abysmally Ranorian ice hockey has been doing. When that sport is generally considered our second best (in terms of team competitions anyway), it doesn't bode well for our chances at digging out of a hole...but then we did.

Once again, to re-iterate: A 10-1 finish to the season. This team is absolutely on fire, has (hopefully) exorcised their demons after their narrow victory over TJUN-ia, and we're taking on the Sherpa Empire in a maximum of five games in our first playoff experience in a non-gridiron competition. Frankly, and we hate to continue getting burned for underestimating our Krauts, we're still underdogs here. The Sherpa Empire came into this tournament ranked number 3, but they finished with the same record, and a worse run differential, than our Krauts. But there's a reason they were considered one of the favorites to win it all come the tournament stages, and Ranoria won't be able to slip up for a second if they are to advance.

To be fair: The rest of the bracket doesn't exactly look much better. As a matter of a fact, if we had maintained the spot that we originally predicted six weeks back, we would have just written it up as a lost in the first round. Banija ended up with the 6^th seed, and, fortunately, we went ahead and shrugged off the Greater Nordics to let them be that sacrificial lamb. If we hadn't done as well as we predicted, we could have been looking at Sarzonia, Nova Anglicana, Zwangzung, or, god help us, a team like Cassadaigua or Newmanistan. So, like we said, it's huge that we were able to finish the way we did. Look, the Sherpa Empire is still fielding one hell of a team, but based on the way they've performed, we at least have a puncher's chance at beating their squad.

We'll see you again next week, in Victoriaville University Stadium in Cassadaigua! And no matter how this goes, with all of the emphasis I can muster, go Krauts!

---

"Not bad kid," Leo snickered, hitting another ball from the pitching machine, "You're keeping up pretty good." The Krauts' star exhaled heavily and readied himself once again. Jesse Griffith, a good few meters to his right, hit his next pitch as well, "I don't exactly have mine going as fast as you do."

"That's alright," Harrison hit one more pitch, then tossed his bat in the air with a smirk, "I've got a solid ten years on you." He moved to shut the machine down, swinging his right arm in a circle a couple times before moving his hand to that shoulder, "You're doing good kid. Look, whatever happens in this series, you're a 15 year old kid, and you helped us get to the knockout stages against international competition. I can't wait to see what the rest of your career's got in store."

"Uh," Griffith rubbed his head, having shut his own machine down, "Thanks, Leo." He, more politely, stored his bat up on the designated rack, sheepish at the praise, "How's your shoulder?"

The star of the Krauts' team shrugged, "A bit tight. Nothing to worry about. It'll hold up kid." He shot the youngest member of their team a look, "But I meant what I said. Even if you don't play well, even if we get blown out, don't take it to heart. You did good, and I'm proud of you. Everything else is a bonus."

Jesse didn't respond this time, offering a nod and an ever-so-slight smile before he ducked his head. "See ya, Leo"

"Deuces."

[Drawkland]

WBC 50: (UNWARRANTED) HIGH HOPES AHEAD!
Written By: Emily Jackson and Vanessa Jones

---

That's right, everyone. The Base Corps is back on the diamond. You may be thinking to yourself, "awesome! I can't wait to see how they manage to pitifully embarrass themselves and our country this time!" Honestly, we're in the same boat. Only a fool would think to bet on Drawkland in the WBC at any time, especially considering our track record. It's a well-known fact that Drawkland are contenders, if not outright dominant in other sports. The one exception to this rule lies within the 90 degree stretch of a baseball field. While the other Corps manage to make the playoffs every tournament nowadays, the Base Corps has trouble with that, and they haven't even won a playoff series yet.

However, for some reason, this WBC feels different to us. Perhaps it's the fact that it's the golden edition of the Classic, where anything could happen. Perhaps it's the fact that we're technically a Pot 1 team due to the massive amount of entrants. Perhaps it's the fact that the Base Corps actually topped their group (somewhat) convincingly and got a top seed in the playoffs. Perhaps I'm developing schizophrenia and the subconscious voices convinced me that the Base Corps has a chance to do something this time. In any case, we have a chance to do something great. Or, knowing the Base Corps, a chance to prove the world that there are no bounds to how hard a team can fucking blow it.

THE BASE CORPS' PROBLEM
I was gonna do a review of our group stage, but I feel like I should just cut to the chase on this one. The Base Corps has a big problem, and that is the late game. Every team has weaknesses and strengths, and the Base Corps' biggest weakness is longevity and keeping their foot on the gas in the last third of the game. All you have to do is look at the meme that has defined our team since WBC 41, the infamous Round of 16 series loss to Scootalove City, 10-3. It's remarkable how much that game, that 9th inning collapse, has been a microcosm of the team as a whole, even throughout many years and personnel changes.

I don't know what it is about our squad, but they simply can't close out games. Of course, we win plenty of games, but there's a lot of winnable games that slip through our fingers and become losses. There's a reason we're the second-worst group winner in the playoffs. Sure, it was enough to make the playoffs, but in a smaller Classic, we'd be one of the bottom seeds. I thought it was a little uncanny how many games the Corps loses by allowing runs in the late game, so I decided to take a look at all the games we played in this group stage. For the purposes of this, a "late winning run" is one that either takes or solidifies a lead out of reach for the eventual winning team, scored in the 7th, 8th, or 9th innings.

DRAWKLAND GROUP STAGE RECORD: 19-11
LOSSES WITH LATE WINNING RUNS: 10 (3, 5, 6, 13, 16, 21, 22, 25, 26, 30)
WINS WITH LATE WINNING RUNS: 7 (4, 7, 12, 14, 24, 27, 28)

So, as you may have noticed, literally all but one single loss in our group stage came from late-game, often come-from-behind victories for our opponent. The only exception was Matchday 10, in which Squidroidia upset us at home by scoring 6 runs by the fourth inning, which we couldn't recover from. Every other loss was thanks to our inability to close. I will give us some credit, we did have a few late-game victories too, but they were usually scoring insurance runs to put the game out of reach rather than true comebacks. In half of these, the other team still scored in the late innings, and we were simply fortunate enough to actually score runs on offense and keep ahead. The same can't be said for our losses, where in a vast majority our bats were silent for the end of the game.

A couple highlights of our futility: matchday six, where we faced off against Quebec for the second time this Classic, and the first time at Quebec. The game started off slow, with only one run scored until the fifth inning, where both teams got a run. Then we scored two in the sixth and three in the seventh! Great, we're now up 7-1 going into the seventh inning stretch, now to just close out and- holy shit, we allowed EIGHT runs in the bottom of the seventh. Eight. Runs. The Grim Reapers batted through their whole lineup and a half, and if it weren't for a final whimper of a strikeout to end the inning, we might've allowed even more (the bases were loaded). Now, after having them in a comfortable chokehold, we're trailing by two, at 7-9. Thankfully we had another two-run inning in the top of the eighth ... only to allow a bottom-of-the-ninth walkoff to Langford to lose the game 9-10.

Look no further than the final matchday of the group stage, going against the Squidroidia squad that had managed to get the better of us a couple times already (like the first game we played, where we scored 1 run in extra innings, only to allow FIVE in the bottom to lose on a walkoff grand slam). It had been a pitcher's duel for the majority of the game. Andrew Tyler, an underrated pitcher in the rotation, had been dealing a no-hitter up until the seventh inning, but thankfully it was an isolated base hit and didn't result in any runs for Team Squidroidia. The bottom of the seventh did result in runs, though, with Lane Kavana driving in Roger Madison on a two-run dinger. Gomez came in to setup relief for the eighth and did his job. Unfortunately the Corps couldn't do anything else to add to our lead in the eighth, but that's fine! After all, a 0-2 lead is nothing to sniff at, especially when we bring in our ace closer an- oh shit, we allowed three runs thanks to a home run by Soda Kaii. We went on to bring a goose egg in the bottom of the ninth and lose the game.

I hope this illustrated the incredibly futile, borderline anomalous propensity for the Base Corps to completely forget how to baseball once they hit the seventh inning stretch. I'm gonna be honest, it's not like we have the baseball talent to match such powerhouses as Newmanistan or classic Super-Llamaland, but our bullpen isn't AWFUL. I mean, they're decent, but not as horrible as you'd seem to expect from our late game record. Even then, sometimes it's a case of leaving our starters in an inning too long, or whatever.

Franklin Bell, in Drawkland, is a crazy ace closer who's feared on the mound. In the international spheres of the WBC, though, he's a laughing stock. He was a rookie in WBC 41, when the Base Corps was transitioning from the Elite Eleven stint (haha remember when we did that) back to actual PBL players. The 10-3 debacle was entirely on him, as he started the ninth inning and ended it. Strangely enough, such an insane failure at a high level didn't destroy his career, at least domestically. Like I said, he's the guy no opponent wants to see come out of the bullpen, provided you're a Drawkian. For some reason, we keep throwing him out here in the WBC, and he keeps performing well some games and completely falling apart in others. The man is a true mystery.

ROUND of 32 vs ETHANE
Despite all our problems in the group stage, and our subpar record, we got a decent draw in the playoffs. Our first round opponent is Ethane, the 21 seed to our 12th seed. They had an 18-12 record, which is actually not far from our 19-11 record. As I mentioned earlier, we were a pretty shitty team for a group winner. In any case, we do have one thing over Ethane, and that's our run differential. They only scraped by with a +11, while we're solid at +41 (which is also why we're at 12th over Quintessence of Dust, the "worst" group winner). If there's one thing that losing a bunch of games towards the end is good for, it means we don't get blown out a lot.

But this is the playoffs, and in a series, it doesn't matter how many runs you win or lose by. All that matters is if you win or lose. Of course, winning or losing in a blowout or heartbreaking fashion can have an intangible effect on the psyche that lasts for the remaining games you play, but as far as advancing in the playoffs is concerned, you just need to go out and win games. This series against Ethane promises to be a tight one, and I won't be surprised if it goes to all five games. I mean, my blood pressure probably hopes it won't, but you just know it will.

Ethane is ranked 26th to our 13th, but we're far from twice their skill. The Red Kites may not be at such heights anymore, especially after missing WBC 48, but they've been much further in the WBC than we have or probably ever will be, finishing second in WBC 38 and capturing the title in WBC 39. Go ahead and point out how that was well over a decade ago, I don't care. The point is that this nation, this squad knows how to win, how to be clutch. This is something the Base Corps has never grasped.

The worst part about this series is that we're going to take it to the wire, fight tooth and nail, maybe even actually win it ... and advance to the Round of 16 like nothing's different. We may come away this World Baseball Classic with a playoff series win, and yet still no quarterfinals appearance. The strangest thing about the WBC quarterfinals is that a Sonnelian nation that ISN'T us has made it there (looking at you, PRIPET).

PLAYOFF PROJECTIONS
Speaking of the WBC playoffs, I guess we can move on to this section. I have some (probably misplaced) faith in the Base Corps to defeat Ethane and advance to the next round, but even that isn't super inspiring. We, at least, have had the fortune to avoid having to play a monster like Newmanistan or hosts Cassadaigua in the Ro16. Our opponent, provided we win, will be the winner of the Sarzonia vs Terre Septentrionale series. Either team has a reasonable chance to win that one, as Sarzonia is outplaying their rank right now (5th seed compared to rank 10, unlike us, who are seed 12 and rank 13! How cool is that?), while Terre Septentrionale is underplaying theirs a bit.

I would reasonably suspect Sarzonia to pull this one off, but you can't count out the Septentrionaliens. Or something like that. Either way, we probably have a decent shot in that series as well, but you know us. Don't you dare count on us. Beyond that is too much of a crapshoot to bother with predicting this early.

Still, at this point, I would say any team in the top eight seeds right now have a reasonable shot at making a deep run (obviously). Newmanistan and Nova Anglicana are the two favorites in my mind right now, but there's a lot of baseball left to play. And even then, you never know when a Great Pond team will make a crackhead run out of nowhere and stun the world. Whether a team like that can actually capture the title remains to be seen, but they could upset the hopes and dreams of many a powerhouse.

This is a big bracket for a big tournament, and there's still so much yet to play. Soon we'll have more of an idea where things are going, but I think we should just focus on the series with Ethane. Winning a bona fide playoff series for the first time would be a good enough reward, even if it doesn't also mean a quarterfinal berth. We at least made the playoffs, which is better than last Classic and many before it. I can only hope this streak of decent form can actually take us somewhere this time ... but it is the Base Corps. For better or worse, my friends ... On Corps.

[Kriegiersien]

After two wins against Cransia and Abanhleft there was the chance to qualify directly for the play-offs. But in Liventia the team gave away the chance to end on the second place with the same points as Liventia, losing 1-9.

Instead they got a Wildcard.



And after getting one of the six precious gifts the opponent for the first round became:

Cassadaigua


What did the players and coaches say:


Firat Hawes
“If you want to really make money, then bet on us. But maybe, don’t invest too much money on the bet.”

Nora Hilton
“I always wanted to strike out the players from Cassadaigua, in Cassadaigua, that will be the best days of my career.”

Leon Prince
“We will need to make many homes. And runs. Home runs. To win. I think.”

Phillip Weeks
“These Cassadaiguans are dangerous. Matriarchy. Hah. They are all Lizard People in disguise. They try to steal your penis for ..reasons. We must be careful.”

Mordbruck
“I don’ t care who we play.”

Sam Thomas
“Oh, that will be great. I have an eye on some of the players. I mean, not because of what you think.”

Otto Orville (Scout and medical):
At least we can now fully focus and prepare for one opponent.

Bort Bartson (Manager):
“Ay caramba. We need to increase our quality now. What I have seen from our players against Liventia showed me that we still can’t keep up on the highest level. Liventia and Abhnhleft are playing pretty calm now, that is not what we will see from Cassadaigua. We need to improve by 200, maybe better 270 % in every aspect.”

[Hampton Island]

(Setting: CEO and Assistant converse, soon after arriving in Brattleboro)

Assistant: How did the whole training a bear to pitch go? Have not heard much about it in a while?

CEO: We had to forget the plan. It failed pretty badly.

Assistant: How badly?

CEO: They would all get annoyed when you told them they did not throw a strike, like if it just missed the corner or something, and for the safety of our trainers, we felt it was best to abandon the idea. They did reach some incredible velocity on their fastballs, but were erratic, as we expected. It just is not a good idea.

Assistant: That’s a shame.

CEO: I am surprised the Cassadagans put us in a university stadium like this. You would think a matchup with us and a four time World Baseball Classic champion would have garnered a little more respect.

Assistant: The stadium is fine, though. I cannot see anything wrong with it.

CEO: I don’t have anything against the stadium specifically other than the fact that it is a college stadium. Brattleboro in itself is the type of city that I enjoy. These high tech cities with younger demographics. It is not a dump like Rutland.

Assistant: Seeing if there is any corporate real estate to purchase?

CEO: Pretty soon, yes. This could be an expensive city, I sense that it is, so I am not certain that I find a worthwhile investment, but it will be worth the look.

Assistant: I hear ya. Hapilopper could be next if we beat Schiltzberg.

CEO: We’ll beat Schiltzberg. They aren’t what they used to be.

Assistant: Do the Haps walk the bears, knowing we have three bears?

CEO: I look forward to that if we meet, we have had success against the Haps. First things first, and that is Schiltzberg. And maybe Northwest Kalactin knocks out Hapilopper.

Assistant: I doubt that.

CEO: I know, but there will be upsets in the playoffs. Maybe down the road, that will be us beating Newmanistan, who rolled in a crap group.

Assistant: They are overrated.

CEO: In this, yes. They played nothing but crap. They are a great team, but that record is inflated due to what they played. Our group was more competitive.

Assistant: Good pont.

[Banija]

A betting man's guide to the WBC 50 Playoffs

STARKSVILLE, CASSADAIGUA- While the Banijan team and media crew and thousands of fans descend on Cassadaigua for the Golden Edition of the World Baseball Classic, we're going to write for those fans at home. That's write- we're going to write a gambling guide. Thanks to recent legislation from the government, sports media is now allowed to indeed write gambling guides and sell them at a profit.

Of course, while this is a gambling guide for those in Banija, this will also do you good wherever you bet these lines, especially if you are in Cassadaigua during the actual tournament. While odds vary slightly, the casinos generally all follow each other in terms of major tournament sports betting, especially when it comes to international tournaments like the World Baseball Classic.

WBC 50 Playoff Bracket
(1) Newmanistan vs (32) South Covello @ Five Star Mobile Stadium, Brattleboro
(16) Ranoria vs (17) The Sherpa Empire @ Victoriaville University Stadium, Victoriaville

(8) Hampton Island vs (25) Schiltzberg @ Brattleboro University Stadium, Brattleboro
(9) Hapilopper vs (24) Northwest Kalactin* @ Ferguson Stadium, Rutland

(4) Cassadaigua vs (29) Krigiersien* @ Dagan Airways Stadium, Concord Heights
(13) Quintessence of Dust vs (20) Abanhfleft @ Concord Heights Beauty School Stadium, Concord Heights

(5) Sarzonia vs (28) Terre Septentrionale @ Winchester City Lottery Stadium, Winchester
(12) Drawkland vs (21) Ethane @ Brattleboro Technical Institute Stadium, Brattleboro


(6) Banija vs (27) The Greater Nordics @ Cocoa-bo Stadium, Starksville
(11) Liventia vs (22) Royal Kingdom of Quebec @ Cassgo Stadium, Victoriaville

(3) Nova Anglicana vs (30) Daskel* @ Qusmair Stadium, New Lakeland
(14) South Newlandia vs (19) Super-Llamaland @ New Lakeland University Stadium, New Lakeland

(7) Ko-oren vs (26) Indusse @ University of Concord Heights Stadium, Concord Heights
(10) TJUN-ia vs (23) West Phoenicia* @ New Lakeland Business School Stadium, New Lakeland

(2) Zwangzug vs (31) Chromatika @ Peak'N'Break Stadium, Grande Mountain
(15) Kohnhead vs (18) Tikariot @ Grande Mountain University Stadium, Grande Mountain

Question 1- Early Knockouts Bets

Now, we'll start with a bet that you probably can't buy in Cassadaigua, but one that is being offered back home.

With the expanded tournament format, of course, comes more betting options. And there is a non-traditional one that the Banijan Casinos are offering. It is called the "Early Knockouts bet." It works as a combined bet on the two "Early Knockout" rounds, defined as both the Round of 32 and the Round of 16. It's an all in bet- one cannot win money per team they get correct, that is too right. IT is strict- if you get 7 of 8 quarterfinalists, you can break even on the money you bet, and if you correctly predict all 8 quarterfinalists, you can win 2.5 times your bet. You can also win four times your bet on the following condition- you go all-in, meaning you can only get anything back if you predict all 8 quarterfinalists, and at least one Quarterfinalist is a double digit seed(10 or lower).

But if you get 6 or less quarterfinalists, you earn no money. You'll see we organized each grouping up top into their four team mini bracket, just as the hosts do. A little visually easier to remember. You don't have to fill out a bracket like it's the Ultra 64 or anything, which is nice- just picking the 8 quarterfinalists. Who will be the final 8 surviving this 78 team tournament? Here's the ABSM's prediction- Tikariot₁₈, Ko-oren₇, South Newlandia₁₄, Banija₆, Sarzonia₅, Cassadaigua₄, Hapilopper₉, and Ranoria₁₆.

It's a bold list, we know. But you wouldn't be a gambling man if you weren't afraid to go bold, right? And anybody who has watched any amount of any WBC knows that the chalk gets thrown away fast, and while it's hard to pick against chalk, you know you have to do so. Do not be afraid.

Question 2- Round of 32 Upset Watch

Now, here's the key to betting- spread your wings! You don't always have to line your bets up. Technically, the house is taking all sorts of bets that go against each at once. Unless you feel strongly about a particular, you don't always have to go by it! Which teams are on upset watch? What higher seeds falling could earn you a payday? Of course, these are the sort of bets that will do you a lot of good in Cassadaigua itself.

Option #1- Royal Kingdom of Quebec₂₂ over Liventia₁₁

Two countries that are both popular in Banija. Now, of course, if we take care of the Greater Nordics in the first round(we are favored, but by no means is anything guaranteed), what figures to be one of the country's most watched series is this battle between the Quebecois and the Liventians. While Quebec is the underdog here, they are a good pick if you want to pick an upset. First, look at the actual WBC rankings. They are basically the same- LIventia ranked 15th, Quebec ranked 16th. They also make an interesting stylistic matchup, with the Quebecois running an unorthodox 6 man rotation and Liventia having an unorthodox 4 man rotation. This is an even matchup- one that the Grim Reapers are certainly capable of winning.

Option #2- Ranoria₁₆ over The Sherpa Empire₁₇

Now, we know what you are thinking. Ranoria is a higher seed- how are they the underdogs? But give it just a little bit of context, and it all clears up. Ranoria is entering the knockout stages for the very first time. They are on an absolute tear, going 8-1 in their last 9 games, and are full of energy. But The Sherpa Empire have been around the block. A traditional powerhouse, they are the defending champions. They've eliminated Banija in the past two WBCs, both times in the quarterfinals. Thanks to that history, despite an uneven group stage, it'd be patently unfair to put them as anything other than the favorites.

TV broadcasters are salivating at the prospect of Newmanistan v. The Sherpa Empire in the Round of 16. A matchup that could've easily been a championship series, instead for the Round of 16. Newmanistan's path to the Round of 16 is clear. But Sherpa's is anything but. The Krauts play with energy and confidence, and fear absolutely nobody. Of course, the defending champions are a different level from anyone they played in the group stage, but Ranoria can legitimately pull off the upset here.

Banija Specific Bets for the Round of 32

And now, your mini betting guide to Banija v. The Greater Nordics. These are bets that you should be able to buy in both Banija and Cassadaigua.

Option 1- Who will have more strikeouts? Duta Condé in Game 1 or Suntukung Kandeh in Game 2?

Banija's top two starters are both veterans, and are part of what Banijans proudly call one of the strongest starting rotations in baseball. Duta Condé is in his fifth WBC as a member of the rotation, and he has always been a big game pitcher. Suntukung Kandeh has always been a big game pitcher as well, with Duta Condé for the entirety of this most recent run.

Duta Condé is probably the favorite to get more strikeouts- there's a reason that he's the team's listed #1 starter, while Kandeh is the listed #2 starter. But don't sleep on Kandeh. When he's on, he's one of the most unhittable pitchers in the game. That lefty curveball can be a back breaker, especially since he throws so hard for a lefty, dialing it up to 95 mph. I'd bet on Kandeh- Duta Condé may be the better pitcher, but Kandeh is really good at getting those strikeouts. Of course, we hope more than anything that both pickup wins, but betting on Kandeh may be your best option here.

Option 2- How many quality starts will Banijan pitchers log this series?

It is the playoffs. With a starting dropping down to the bullpen for relief and the extra off days allowing for having a smaller rotation, the opportunity to have intense bullpen outings is there. But Ousman Kakay has always preferred to let his starters go deep into games, including playoff games, even as the game's trend starts to go the other way. Of course, the definition of a quality start is this- at least six full innings pitched, while allowing 3 earned runs(or less).

So Ousman Kakay will give his pitchers the opportunities to go deep. But he's not afraid to pull pitchers who are struggling, either. In our WBC 47 run, we had starting pitchers coming off the bench and putting in relief innings. He'll never go for the concept of the opener, but he'll do whatever it takes to win as well. The over/under is 1.5- but I'd take the over on this. 2 seems like a reasonable number. Our prediction is that the Banijans can win this one in four games, and two of them will be from quality starts where the pitcher goes deep, and we can skip our middle relievers and he can hand the ball straight to the backend of the bullpen.

And there's your betting guide! Get ready for some fun baseball.

[Daskel]

Let's go!
Let's go!
In this inning!
Let's decide this match!

The crowd cheers were wild, as team Daskel had bases loaded in the eighth inning. The last game of the group’s stage was impressive, and after lone tactical runs in the past innings, this time the batters ignited. In the batter’s box, Gō was looking at the pitcher’s eye. The ball was released, and it was just a flash of white before the ball went flying to the unknown. Shinji felt the people screaming. The sound was deafening. When he was about to start running to second, he finally saw the ball. Gone, hitting the scoreboard. He lifted his fist to the air, bounced a couple of times and just shouted. “Freaking finally!!!!”

“AND IT’S GONE. GRAND SLAM FOR GOU, WHO WAS RESTLESSLY WAITING FOR THIS MOMENT! Do you hear that? It’s the fanfare rollin’ from the stands! Play louder, Daskel is 0-8!”

That inning ended with Reizei, after two more runs that added to the already big lead. The iconic scoreboard of the Daito Kyujou read 0-10. Izo was running to the mound. It was time to finish this up.

“Izo is in the mound for the Daskies with a mission. Three more outs, and the Daskies. Duchamps is batting for the Saints. Izo windups, here’s the first pitch…strike! No balls one strike”

Shibaike framed the second pitch. A fastball in the left corner. Izo targeted the glove like a sharpshooter. Duchamps hit a grounder right to Reizei, who took it and launched the rocket to first.

“One out, one out!” screamed the infielder. In the dugout, Sakamoto was smiling. This was starting to feel like a school game in terms of spirit, and that? That was hella awesome!.

“Granger is now on the plate, waiting for the first pitch. Shibaike does not give any signals yet. Is he giving Izo a bit of Freedom?”

It was fast paced, as Izo threw two of his favorite pitches, curves just to the corner. One ball and one strike. The pitcher was not preoccupied of the ball.

Pitching in Daskel was a heavy task. The school culture of the ace was demanding, and Izo could feel the weight on his shoulders. On top of all, being alone in the mound at home was… really silent. The country’s baseball culture was thrilling in the stands, but there was a golden rule: The band starts when your batters start. In his lone ticket to the Daikyuu, it felt like combating with a giant. One batter in the box and a whole brass band playing for him. It was huge. Here, though, was incredibly silent, as the fans followed that rule. Every daskelian baseball follower knew that as a fan, you have to respect the rival’s batter moment.

To be honest, he would like at least a little bit of noise. At least the DPY does not use the DH rule. He can have a band behind him too.

“Here comes the third pitch. Granger swings! Two outs for Izo! Tanaka-san!”

“Nasty pitch right there. A curveball just outside the frame. I would have swing as well”

“one ball two strikes for Izo. Things are not looking good for Granger. Here it comes… Sanshin!!!! Strikeout for Izo, just one more batter to go! One more run and we’ll officially be on the run of the WBC title!”

The crowd started to come alive right now. Yeah, rules were a thing, but there’s just one “first time” to qualify to the WBC playoffs. Izo smiled, quite rare coming from him. At last, some noise.

Behind the plate, Shibaike was thinking about the next pitch. He swiftly signaled.

“Just one more out. Shibaike and Izo interchange some signals. Izo pitches… slider to the center left and Albrici hits! Ground to third. Oshimura has it, throws over to first aaaand… KISHIMOTO HAS IT. IT’S DONE. DASKIES WIN. DASKIES WIN. SEE YOU IN THE PLAYOFFS! SEE YOU IN CASSADAIGUA!”

Everyone ran to the homeplate to bow, the tradition too much ingrained in them by now. A couple of bows to the rivals and officials, and the team ran to each stand in the best of spirits, bowing to them as well, a needed thank you for their passionate support during the groups stage.

Playoffs. It felt quite surreal to know that they would be playing away from home, now as the fixed location, and not product of hectic traveling. Maybe it was time to promote a regular international cheering squad?

---

OFFICIAL LINEUP (VS NOVA ANGLICANA)

STARTERS

C - Shibaike Takahiro
1B - Kishimoto Ryūtarō
2B - Rokutani Daizō
3B - Oshimura Eisuke
SS - Gō Shinji
LF - Cho Juzou
CF - Fuji Kōhei
RF - Reizei Seijirō

Starters: Kojima, Kanaoxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

BATTING LINEUP

1. Reizei
2. Kishimoto
3. Oshimura
4. Gō
5. Shibaike
6. Rokutani
7. Fuji
8. Cho
9. Pitcher Spot
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

[TJUN-ia]

Game 28 - Ranoria (31) 5-3 TJUN-ia (22) (The Diamond in The Gardens, New Washington)
After securing a return to the playoffs with a victory over Rwekazaland, Gene Almac would start at the final game at The Diamond for this campaign as the Battin' Jags looked to make it 7 wins on the bounce against Ranoria. The Krauts were looking to secure their spot in the playoffs either through the wildcard or by finishing in the top 2 but the Krauts hadn't beaten the Jags so far this WBC, so this was going to be an interesting fixture for New Washington's swansong.

Both Almac and Tommy Verona were dominant in the first 3 innings of this one but when the 4th arrived, Ranoria struck first with a Nicholas Lux homer. They got another run in the 5th before Angel Enrique tied the game by himself with a 2-run bomb. The Krauts would remain brilliant, Verona in particular, and they got 2 more in the 6th to make it 4-2 to them with 3 to play. Verona was brought off after 7 for Erin Phelps and both teams would get 1 more run before the end of this one. The Ranorian dugout, especially Shortstop Leonardo Harrison, couldn't quite believe what they had achieved here in The Gardens: they had finally beaten TJUN-ia and the group lead was tied once again heading into the big game in Copenhagen...

Game 29 - TJUN-ia (22) 6-5 The Greater Nordics (14) (King Lauritz I Stadium, Copenhagen)
Many people felt that this one would be the group decider. Jose Almas the starter as TJUN-ia travelled to Copenhagen for the final duel with The Greater Nodics in a huge game for both teams with Ranoria only a game back on whoever lost this one. Both Phillip Hallas-Verona and Kaj Eriksen knew how big this game would be in the long run and what a game it would turn out to be at King Lauritz I Stadium.

The game began with nothing, then both teams got a run in the 2nd. TJUN-ia got another in the 3rd, a homer by Almas himself, and things were looking good for the Jags for a while with a 2-run bomb by Almas again made it 4-1 after 5. Then the chaos came to town in the 6th, a 3-run bomb by Aleksi Hansen tieing this game up in an instant. The Nordics took the lead for the first time in the 7th and that spelt the end for Almas on the mound, replaced by Kim Tsu-Ka. But the Battin' Jags would have the final say in the 8th, a 2-run homer by Ki Yung-son silencing the crowd here and it was that momentum that allowed Kim Tsu-Ka to end the game for The Nordics. TJUN-ia were back on to of the group with one game to play, with the Nordics having to travel to Nashville on the final day.

Game 30 - Sangti (UR) 1-2 TJUN-ia (22) (Rounders Field, Portside)
The campaign began in Portside and it shall end in Portside. Kyle McNash was the starter for the final home game of the group stage as TJUN-ia hosted bottom side Sangti knowing a win would seal the group in their favour. The magical 20 wins had already been reached by this point but with Playoff baseball on the horizon and the Indios in town, many people wouldn't be against a 21st in the Jungle. This final game would be slow and a bit boring, both teams knowing their fates were already decided, but 2 homers brought some action to Rounders Field in its WBC50 swansong. The first came from the visitors in the 2nd, Marietta Joy Bascos with an excellent shot to deep right to give the Indios the lead. The 2nd came from the hosts to the joy of the crowd, Ki Yung-son getting his 2nd in as many games with a 2-run bomb in the 4th. That was all she wrote for this one and once the final batter was retired in the 9th, the players began to celebrate. With Ranoria winning 6-1 at home, TJUN-ia were group winners at 21-19. The Krauts overtook the Nordics on head-to-head record, meaning Copenhagen's own have to settle for a wildcard slot at 19-11.

And thus TJUN-ia are in bak-to-back playoffs, but the real tests are on the way. The Battin' Jags travel to Cassadiagua and specifically New Lakeland for a duel with the 40th-ranked, 23rd seeds Confederates from West Phoenicia, who only advanced at 15-15 over The Fortem on head-to-head record. It will certainly be an interesting occasion to test out Baseball TJUN-ia's new checklist for the playoffs: Win a game, Win a series, Go as far as you can...

---

Final Group Record: 21-9 (1st/63 Points/+37RD)

---

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

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

[Quintessence of Dust]

Full roster

Amended roster details for playoffs.

DH preference: We will not use DH against Abanhfleft, so as to avoid getting stuck in a recursive loop given our mutually reciprocal permission. The same applies should we advance to face Kriegiersien.

Starting rotation: We will go down to a 4-person rotation, starting as follows:

#1 Kawakami
#2 Martin
#3 Fujimori

If we are 2 – 1 up:

#4 Lacroix [opener] + long relievers
#5 Kawakami

If we are 1 – 2 down:

#4 Kawakami
#5 Martin

In the event of winning in 3 or 4, the rotation resets. In the event of winning in 5, Fujimori moves up and Lacroix opens #3, with Martin taking Kawakami’s role in any required 4th or 5th games. In the event of losing in 3, 4, or 5, all the pitchers get a nice pat on the back.

Jökullsson and Nakajima join the rotation and can be expected to feature in long relief, especially to LHB. Relieving will be more aggressive. Pitch counts remain “70 to 90”, but are likely to be nearer the 70 end.

---

Lineup: Ben Wilson is withdrawn through injury (knee). We have exercised our right to call up a replacement:

#25 Kaspar Lång (R/R) Combined Veterans
.268 / .240 / 21.0% / 2.7
Doesn’t have Ben’s speed or defensive energy. Strikes out a ton. Raw power, brought in because the middle order power hitters have flopped so badly. Extreme pull hitter but as a righty that’s less of a problem. Decent splits. Basically he does two things well (hit with power, walk), everything else semi-competently to semi-terribly. Too weak defensively to start which means abandoning the platoon in left.

Luke Phelps has essentially claimed the catcher role permanently. Lineups remain somewhat flexible but default to:

1. Andreeva (CF)
2. Hisakawa (SS)
3. Symonds (LF)
4. Steinnsson (RF) to RHP // Tanaka (RF) to LHP
5. Phelps (C)
6. Matsuoka (1B) to RHP // Kaufer (1B) to LHP
7. Ljung (3B)
8. pitcher
9. Tamura (2B)

Matsuoka, Steinnsson and Symonds are likely to be aggressively pinch-hit for to LHP.

[Cassadaigua]

Baseball begins, with soccer fever?
By Chelsea Dufresne, Concord Heights Times

If you are from another nation and have made the trip to Cassadaigua, I want to welcome you to our great country. No matter where you have ended up, whether it be the nation’s capital in Concord Heights, the tech city of Brattleboro, on the coast or elsewhere, I hope you have a great time. Hopefully, you will be able to enjoy more of what makes these great cities other than their ability to host a baseball game. It is the Golden Edition of the World Baseball Classic, and the passion of the Cassadagan fan will be heard and seen throughout the Matriarchy.

You might have to excuse us tonight, however. As you may know, Cassadaigua is a sports crazed nation, and has had success in most international tournaments. This includes the World Cup, where the team went to the semifinals and finished 3rd overall in World Cup 86. To get there, the Fillies had an excellent qualifying campaign which lasted into the World Cup, and they would meet up against the nation of Nephara, in Drawkland, in the World Cup 86 semifinal for the right to go to the Proving Grounds in Tundra Falls, Newmanistan. The Banijans out in Starksville will be able to tell you what happened next, but the Cassadagans were not able to make it to the final. After rallying to tie Nephara at 3 after full time, extra time was intense, with it going from 4-3, to 4-4, to 5-4 and the eventual Nephara win.

Why am I bringing this up? Well, there’s a big game tonight in the Copa Rushmori. Copa Rushmori 36 semifinal: Cassadaigua vs Nephara, so you’ll have to understand if that is the first thing on the minds of our fans right now and not a round of 32 playoff series against Kriegiersien. The players are certainly and properly focused, but sports bars throughout Cassadaigua are going to dealing with Cassadagan fans wanting to watch the soccer game.

Don’t fret, though, because the Cassadagan Association for Baseball is smart. (unlike the Cassadagan Association for Basketball). Due to time zones, it was easy to schedule the baseball games to take place before the start of the Copa Rushmori semifinal. So, you will be able to co-exist just fine with the Copa Rushmori excitement and the desire to get payback on Nephara from the World Cup 86 semifinal. Relax and enjoy the cities and your stay, and get an extra feel tonight for the sports crazed nation that we are.

[Liventia]

Liventia announces playoff rotation for Quebec series
Victoriaville, CASSADAIGUA— After an underwhelming 9-6 second half of their World Baseball Classic 50 qualifying campaign that saw Liventia top its group but only end up with the 11th seed of the 13 group winners, Baseball Liventia has announced a change in the team's rotation for the round of 32 playoff series against Royal Kingdom of Quebec.

The quirks of the format used for the 50th Classic have pitched the teams ranked 15th and 16th in the world against each other in the round of 32, in the 11th and 22nd seeds respectively. This, however, poses an additional challenge for Dermot Rowntree's men as instead of facing, in theory, the 22nd-best team of the WBC qualifiers, they instead face a team that on paper are equals to Liventia.

Headlining Baseball Liventia's announcement is the promotion of Talbott South Hilltops starter Henry Bates into the rotation. Bates, the NBL conference Pitcher of the Year this season, was used in an emergency starter/high leverage situation throughout the group stage. However, he will now start Game 2 against Quebec, with management keen to rely on his proven ability to handle playoff pressure.

Liventia has home advantage for the best-of-five series, with the projected rotation as follows:
Game 1 starter: Noah Rippin (CBL conference Pitcher of the Year, led entire Liventian league in strikeouts with 283)
Game 2 starter: Henry Bates (NBL conference Pitcher of the Year, led NBL in pitching WAR)
Game 3 starter: Ashley Lutley
Game 4 starter, if up 2-1: opener Damien Marley, followed by bullpen game
Game 4 starter, if down 2-1: opener Damien Marley, followed by Doug Rawsthorne (led NBL in wins and ERA)
Game 5 starter: Noah Rippin (with Doug Rawsthorne available in relief, if Liventia were up 2-1 in series)

[The Sherpa Empire]

The Sherpa national baseball team was at the airport with their luggage, waiting for the plane that would take them to Cassadaigua. Chongba Lee took the opportunity to talk to the players about what to expect when they got to Victoriaville.

Kami Akunjee sat there looking like a bewildered marmot. "What's a Ranoria?"

Tandi Ojha rolled his eyes. "What's a grammar?"

Lee glared at them. He wasn't in the mood for Akunjee's banter. He wanted the players to take this series seriously, not treat it like a joke and take it for granted. "Excellent questions!" he said sarcastically. "I'm about to answer the first one, and I can only hope that Akunjee will learn by example how to use correct grammar.

"On paper we're a better team than Ranoria, but they don't give you a trophy for being the better team on paper, and Ranoria is on a hot streak. We can lose still this series if we get complacent. If you want to try homeopathic medicine or give an all-day seminar on how you train a squid to print your tax forms, that's your business, but you still need to be ready to play your absolute best when we take the field against Ranoria."

"You can't really train a squid to print your tax forms," Luochong Zhuang chimed in, completely missing the point of everything Lee had said. "That would be pretty cool if you could, but their ink is a defense mechanism, so it kind of..."

Lee cracked a smile. Zhuang's naivete and social ineptitude could be annoying, but after a while, you just learned to laugh it off. "It was a joke Zhuang. I do my taxes online and I wasn't planning to use a squid as a printer. I just need you to take Ranoria seriously."

Zhuang smiled too. "Oh, yeah... I sort of want to pitch against them so I can see what all the fuss is about, but I sort of don't because if I'm pitching it means we didn't sweep them."

"It also means we didn't get swept," said Lee. "You need to be ready for that game."

After they arrived in Victoriaville, Lee got his pitching staff together for a more formal meeting where they went over the Ranorian line-up in more detail. When he got to Jesse Griffith, Wangdi Ai and Kami Akunjee scoffed at the idea of a 15 year old playing on WBC team. Lee acknowledged that it was unusual. "Yeah, okay he's just a kid, but think how dumb you'll look if you can't get him out. You'll want to take advantage of his inexperience and get him chasing crap. And don't bean the guy, but you might be able to rattle him with a good brushback."

Akunjee said, "Okay," but Ai didn't look convinced. Ai was quite young himself and he liked trying to blow everyone away with his fastball.

"Ai, seriously, I'm going slap you about the head with a large squid if you can't get this guy out," Lee said. "And don't bean the guy."

"Oh, don't worry; I'll get him out!" said Ai.

"And don't bean him."

"Okay, I heard you," said Ai.

Ai vs. Verona was a pitching match-up that would light up the radar guns. The sportscasters on SISN were talking up the potential for a great pitchers' duel if they both had good starts -- but there were some good bats in the line-up too. The sportscasters also noted that the Krauts didn't have a deep bullpen, so the Sherpas could win the series by wearing down the Ranorian pitchers, making them throw a lot of pitches and then running over them when they got tired.

Lee had noticed too that the Krauts had an unusually small pitching staff, and he advised his batters to be patient at the plate. This would be a great series for players like Ojha that knew how to waste a pitcher's time taking balls or fouling off pitches. Yi and Vanga, who had the best plate discipline on the Sherpas' bench, would be the first ones to get subbed in if Lee needed to adjust the line-up.

[Tikariot]

Part 1
Part 2
Part 3
Part 4
Part 5
Part 6

Hi there, other human, how are you doing tonight? Oh, I forgot, you guys don't talk to softballs, sorry, my bad. Yeah, go over to the couch, it looks really comfortable.

So where was I? Ah yes, I still need to get my equipment to get in touch with my union. If the adults would just focus on the important things instead of "girls' night out" or an even worse excuse, "work". We're talking about balls here, I've even heard adults acknowledge that! But I digress. We need to build a case about ball rights being suppressed and then--

What are you guys doing? There is enough space on that couch, you don't have to practically sit on each other! And why are you looking at her like that? I don't like that look! She is supposed to be working here, you know, baby sitting? Why do they call it baby sitting to begin with? One: She is not a baby from what I have learned from listening to these ignorant humans that refuse to acknowledge that I am here. Two: She can sit by herself. Three: This so-called "sitter" is not sitting on her either, so what is that about?

Dude, give her some room! Wait, she's pulling him. Why? Why do you want to be that close together? Uh, apparently even closer. Oh, oh! Medics! Medics! There's something wrong with her! He has to give her mouth to mouth! I heard about that when the guy who found me in Banija was studying for something! Why doesn't anybody listen to me? HELP! HELP! He needs help! Why is she giggling? I'm not a specialist here, but if you are kind of dying, you don't giggle, do you?

I knew something was wrong with her! He just asked her if she was "on the pill"! So she must be sick or something. And she said no. So she is NOT sick. You guys are confusing me. Talking about babies now? Oh! Maybe I can find out where babies are manufactured! Maybe this evening is not completely useless! Dude, stop with the mouth to mouth, she's not taking any pills, she is fine! Why are you unbuttoning her shirt now? Oh, maybe to check, if she is really doing ok. OK, I can see that, better be safe than sorry.

[some time later]

THAT - WAS - GROSS! I know I wanted to know where babies were manufactured, but I really, really, REALLY wish I hadn't seen - that... If this is how babies are manufactured, you guys have some serious issues in the work flow! If I had eyes, I would scratch them out right now! Ah yes, I would need arms and hands for that, too. But who cares about details right now? You, get out - NOW! Yes, now! Put that - that thing there away, it was bad enough you kept stabbing her with it! See how unhappy she is? She keeps saying that she is not ready for this, ever thought about asking her first, if she was?

What now? Easy - throw him out! At first he doesn't give you any space on the couch, then he gives you mouth to mouth - what did he call that - resuscitation or something, repeatedly even though you don't need pills, then he stabs you - down - there - and all, and now you tell him you are not ready? You better tell the old human about that when he comes back!

Oh, a car door, must be him. Or her. Doesn't matter who it is! Just tell them, ok? Why are you sending him to the back door? They are coming from the front, no? How are you going to tell them now? I really don't get you guys. Sir, good you're back, the baby sitter has something important to tell you! What does she mean, nothing happened? No, you were not watching TV! Sir, if you go around the house, you will still find the dude!

What?? You are giving her money now? What is this place???

[to be continued]

[Northwest Kalactin]

Top 5 WBC Dynasties
Hey, you know us. We are the dynasty people. We haven’t done one of these for WBC, but this one may be the best one yet of our lists.

1. Schiltzberg 33-40
Oh yes, these guys are first. Schiltzberg are 4 time champions, with all 4 of those titles coming in the 33-37 age of the World Baseball Classic. Their first title came out of nowhere, as they beat Maklohi Vai in the 33rd World Baseball Classic. This title would be the first one of many to come and after a relatively disappointing 34th edition, they came out in the 35th edition out for blood. Fittingly, their second title would come against The Great Pond, who has no relation to Tha Great Pond. The Great Pond had an amazing run that edition, as they came out of the blue to make it all the way to the championship, before being stopped by Schiltzberg. Schiltzberg would not settle at 2 titles though, as they went back to back to back by winning the next 2 titles, with wins over Maklohi Vai and Super Llamaland. Despite not winning anymore titles, they would soon be back at their glory, as they had 2 straight third place finished along with a second place. What a team.

2. Super Llamaland 28-31
4 straight finals appearances certainly speaks volumes when you want to look at the best dynasties among teams. Super Llamaland managed exactly that as they went to 4 straight title games and won 3 of them as they also won 2 straight titles over Jeckland, who would sadly never end up finding the glory of winning a title. Their second title would come on their home field over Jeckland, and they would end up winning that series 3-1, as they cemented theirselves as one of the best teams ever. Another title would come after a series sweep against Jeckland, but would fall off after that. Super Llamaland would finally come back 9 classics later, as they would beat Schiltzberg in Concord Heights. Their most recent title was their 5th, which occurred in Republica, over Darmen.

3. Newmanistan 10-17
Even though they did have a good amount of success before this, Newmanistan had their real glory days in the 10th through 17th World Baseball Classics, where they won all of their first 4 titles, which would soon turn into 6, after they finally won the 6th title in the 40s of the WBC. They bested the underdog team Sectristan for their first title, and that marked the start of it. Their second title would come against Zwangzug, who was also a former champion and a team that had been a power. After a loss to Cassadaigua at their home park in WBC 14, they would come out and beat Zwangzug again, in the Babbage Islands for their 3rd title in 5 classics. Their final title up until WBC 41 would come in Lycrabon, where they would beat Tarrentum in Game 7 for their 4th title.

4. Az-cz 1-3
The original WBC dynasty, Az-cz. These guys were the best team back in their heydays, and it wasn’t even close. 3 straight titles showed how good these guys could play on the international level, and they weren’t afraid to go out and kill the rest of the competition. A win over West Pasco, who was never heard from again after would kick it off for these guys, and it just kept getting better from there. Every heard of Milchama? Three time champions? Yea, these guys swept them in the finals of WBC 2. Another title would be brought in during WBC 3, after they beat Qazox 6-3 in one of the 3 1-game finals series to ever take place. The only reason why they are not higher is because after that, they didn’t really do anything, so there just isn’t enough performance after their 3 titles to justify being higher.

5. Cassadaigua 14-19
Cassadaigua is one of the best teams during WBC history, and just like Newmanistan, they got started early and then started again in the 40s. Cassadaigua came in and surprised many after they beat Newmanistan, on their home turf. Another title would come against Tocrowkia, when they pulled out a win in game 5 so they could secure their second title in 3 years. WBC 19 would bring some more fruits of victory, and they beat Saugeais in a 4-2 series, once again on the fields of Newmanistan. For some reason they love to do well in Newmanistan, like they have finished Top 3 in 5 of the WBCs that Newmanistan has hosted. Nevertheless, a great team, even if they are last on this list.

[Kohnhead]

The Pandas roll into best of five series with Tikariot


The Pandas have been hot as of late going 6-0 to end the Group Stage

After losing 5-2 to Terre Septentrionale in our 24th match it looked like we would hover around 16-17 wins and maybe squeak into the playoffs as a wildcard team destined to be swept by one of the top teams. Instead we turned it around completely doing a 180 as we would finish the campagin 6-0 to get to 20-10 including 2 wins against Ko-oren the number 6 team in the World.

Kohnhead                       0 0 0 2 0 0 2 0 0  4
Ko-oren                        1 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0  2

Ralphie Bloggs showed why he was our ace in this one as we delivered in a 4-2 win that started the 6-0 rally at te end of the season. Ko-oren are known for having a top three pitching staff but only an okay offense but we got to their pitchers a bit in a 4-2 victory and Bloggs pitched an eight inning gem strking out seven while only allowing two runs. The hitting did quite well against a Ko-oren staff that allowed under three runs a game. Overall it was a great performance and while we didn't know it at the time, it was most definitely a sign of things to come.

Kohnhead                       1 0 1 0 0 0 1 0 1  4
Velarland                      0 2 0 0 1 0 0 0 0  3

Despite such a good showing on the road against Ko-oren we almost lost on the road again to Velarland after Allan Fox allowed them to score two runs in the second inning and after the top of the third the score was tied at two. If you thought a high scoring game was in the cards you'd be wrong and we would go until the 7th inning without scoring any more runs while they would get one in the 5th. Heading into the 9th inning with the score tied at 1 it would take one pitch to Jessie Cherry to give us the go ahead run as he sent one deep, Maddy Lane would close out the game as we jumped to 16-10 and second place in the Group.

Inner AngianaUsordia           2 0 2 0 0 0 1 0 0  5
Kohnhead                       0 0 2 0 0 0 2 3 X  7

Hosting surprising Inner AngianaUsordia at home, Sharon Mclellan did not have her best game allowing four runs with all four coming in the first three innings and she was pulled middle of the third. Fowler would surrender the fifth in the seventh inning where we once again saw The Pandas trailing through the 7th inning stretch. We have been very clutch in the late innings but really need to work on starting better. However in the bottom of the seventh we scored two before scoring our final three runs on a Ratliff homer to seal it 7-5. Just like that we were 3-0 in our last three games against two of the three ranked teams in our group and one of the unrankeds. This win meant we were guaranteed to finish in the top three of our group and would probably be advancing at 17-10 but seeding was yet to be determined.

Kohnhead                       0 0 0 0 2 1 0 0 1 1  5
Philamer Isle                  0 0 0 0 3 0 0 0 1 0  4

This one went down to the wire actually going to extra innings as we once again turned a winnable game into an extremely close game against Philamer Isle an unranked 8 win team. However we once again proved how clutch we can be with a run in the top of the ninth that looked to be the go-ahead run (before they tied it up in the bottom of the frame) and Stuart Dorsey's actual go-ahead run in the top of the tenth. With a 15-4 clobbering of Velarland, Terre Septentrionale still were a game behind us with The Pandas having to play them in the next match. Based on tiebreaker whoever won the meeting between us and TS would take second.

Kohnhead                       0 0 2 0 1 1 2 0 0  6
Terre Septentrionale           0 0 0 0 0 1 0 1 0  2

We clinched second in the group with a statement 6-2 victory against 17th ranked Terre Septentrionale which also if we hadn't already done so got us a spot in the Round of 32. It marks the first time a Kohnheadian team will be making it past the first round of a big 5 tournament (World Cup, IBC, WCoH, WB, WBC) and at this point we were just playing for seeding in hopes of getting a better draw at 19-10 riding a 5 game winning streak.

Ko-oren                        0 0 0 0 2 0 0 0 1  3
Kohnhead                       0 0 0 0 3 1 0 0 X  4

We would look like one of the hottest teams in the WBC riding a six game win streak as we snuck past Ko-ore 4-3 for our second straight (and only two) win against them. This one came down to the wire but in the top of the ninth when it mattered most we limited them to just one run to preserve a 4-3 lead and finish 20-10.


The Round of 32
With a 20-10 record we finished as the 15 seed (we would have qualified without the 32 team format) and will have to take on 18th seeded Tikariot at Grande Mountain University Stadium in Grande Mountain, Cassadaigua. Tikariot just like us are considered an up and coming nation in the sports world who excel in football and baseball almost making the World Cup Qualification playoffs on their first attempt and winning the 11th IBS.

Tikariot finished 19-11 and qualified in second place out of Group 4 following behind the hosts Cassadaigua whom they kept pace with for a while before faltering a bit. On paper we actually match up quite well, The Pandas scored 137 times and allowed 117 runs while The Owls scored 120 but allowed 120 meaning they have a +21 run differential and we have a +20.

My prediction: Despite this I think Tikariot takes this one decently easily in 4 games.



Kohnhead Rotation (4 person for knockouts)
Game 1: Ralphie Bloggs
Game 2: Fletcher Crouch
Game 3: Allan Fox
Game 4 (if necessary): Sharon Mclellan
Game 5 (if necessary): Ralphie Bloggs

[Ethane]

Ethane to face Drawkland

Heading into the knock-out rounds of the 50th World Baseball Classic, the Red Kites have a tough task ahead of them to even progress a stage into the playoffs. With the team in the situation it is in, this wasn't to be unexpected - baseball has been neglected recently over the shores in Ethane - but there were some optimists hoping this team would have enough to put in a decent performance.

It depends on what you consider a decent performance though, and within which time period and framework. For this team, right now, where they are at right now should be considered a good performance. They excelled in the groups, coming second with a healthy margin to third. If they were better able to exploit their chances, they may have even been able to take first. They had a positive run differential - low, but still positive. That's better than quite a lot of teams that were in this tournament. And they've made the playoffs. And now, the prospect of facing any of these teams in the playoffs does seem daunting, but the Red Kites are known to get down and dirty; they're known to put a shift in, upset the odds, and show who they really are.

And honestly, that's what this team will have to bank on throughout these playoffs to even stand a chance of going anywhere. Every step this team takes, it will only get harder. The groups, compared to this, were a breeze in the park. Sylestone, while our rivals and naturally group mates, are a walk in the park compared to some of the figures you'll find in the playoffs - Newmanistan, Nova Anglicana, Super-Llamaland, and others. Even Schiltzberg is back - remember them?

The team has upset the odds before. Think back to those fightbacks, those astonishing victories against the likes of Super-Llamaland. Think back to the Ethanian victory in the World Baseball Classic all those editions ago. This is a team that we know can perform. But they've been absent recently.

But forget 'the good old days'. That was then, when the Red Kites were good. When they were seen as a formidable opponent. That day is no longer. This is no longer a well-funded, top-of-the-world team, looking to claim another title. This is a team now looking for scraps at the front-end of the playoffs. This is a team that would be happy progressing one round.

And they face Drawkland. And it's possible. But this isn't 'the good old days'. This isn't a victory you can count on. In fact, this time Drawkland are the overwhelming favourites. Their story over the past 5-10 editions has been far more eventful than that of the Red Kites - they've challenged, they've pushed, they've had their chances. They haven't been missing editions. And while Ethane has been absent, they've been improving, getting better, honing their craft. When the Red Kites walk out on to the pitch tomorrow, they have to remember. They are not what once was. Drawkland are not who they once were. This is a tough match. And it is Drawkland's to lose.

We're fully expecting Drawkland to walk away with victory comfortably on this one, but then again... Ethane does have a tendency to pull off an upset.

[Newmanistan]

THE ROCKET REPORT

PREDICTION TIME

By Taylor Larson,

It’s that time again! The playoffs are about to begin, and we are all excited to see who is going to take home the trophy in Concord Heights, Cassadaigua this time around. Cassadaigua has been a common host of the World Baseball Classic, and the reason for that is because they know how to put on a great show. I expect nothing less from them this time. What started out as a 78 team field has been condensed to 32, and the Rockets, despite going 1-2 in their last three games, are the number one seed with a record of 26-4. You have to hope that the team has not peaked already, especially after they were blanked by Equestria, but paranoia is never a good thing. This team won 26 out of 30 games. That is pretty good. Now, the predictions have begun, and because Brianne Henry had done such a great job in her World Baseball Classic predictions in the past, she has come out of retirement here to be my special guest that I will be making predictions against. We did this once before, and she beat me, so I am looking for a little bit of payback. It is a larger field, so we will see how it works.

How scoring works: 2 points for picking the winner. 1 point for picking the amount of games. You must have both teams in matchup in order to get points for the matchup.

Here are the predictions that Brianna sent in:

(1) Newmanistan vs (32) South Covello - Newmanistan in 3
(2) Zwangzug vs (31) Chromatika - Zwangzug in 4
(3) Nova Anglicana vs (30) Daskel- Nova Anglicana in 5
(4) Cassadaigua vs (29) Kriegiersien- Cassadaigua in 4
(5) Sarzonia vs (28) Terre Septentrionale- Sarzonia in 4
(6) Banija vs (27) The Greater Nordics- Banija in 5
(7) Ko-oren vs (26) Indusse- Ko-oren in 3
(8) Hampton Island vs (25) Schiltzberg- Hampton Island in 5
(9) Hapilopper vs (24) Northwest Kalactin- Hapilopper in 4
(10) TJUN-ia vs (23) West Phoenicia- TJUN-ia in 5
(11) Liventia vs (22) Royal Kingdom of Quebec- Liventia in 4
(12) Drawkland vs (21) Ethane- Drawkland in 5
(13) Quintessence of Dust vs (20) Abanhfleft- Abanhfleft in 5
(14) South Newlandia vs (19) Super-Llamaland- South Newlandia in 4
(15) Kohnhead vs (18) Tikariot- Kohnhead in 5
(16) Ranoria vs (17) The Sherpa Empire- The Sherpa Empire in 4

Second Round:
(1) Newmanistan vs (17) The Sherpa Empire- Newmanistan in 5
(8) Hampton Island vs (9) Hapilopper- Hapilopper in 4
(4) Cassadaigua vs (20) Quintessence of Dust- Cassadaigua in 5
(5) Sarzonia vs (12) Drawkland- Sarzonia in 5
(6) Banija vs (11) Quebec- Banija in 4
(3) Nova Anglicana vs (14) South Newlandia- South Newlandia in 5
(7) Ko-oren vs (10) TJUN-ia- Ko-oren in 4
(2) Zwangzug vs (15) Kohnhead- Zwangzug in 4

Quarterfinals:
(1) Newmanistan vs (9) Hapilopper- Newmanistan in 5
(4) Cassadaigua vs (5) Sarzonia- Sarzonia in 5
(6) Banija vs (14) South Newlandia- South Newlandia in 4
(2) Zwangzug vs (7) Ko-oren- Zwangzug in 4

Semifinals
(1) Newmanistan vs (5) Sarzonia- Newmanistan in 4
(2) Zwangzug vs (14) South Newlandia- Zwangzug in 4

Final:
(1) Newmanistan vs (2) Zwangzug- Newmanistan in 6 (Brianne feels good!)

Here are mine:
(1) Newmanistan vs (32) South Covello- Newmanistan in 4
(2) Zwangzug vs (31) Chromatika- Zwangzug in 3
(3) Nova Anglicana vs (30) Daskel- Nova Anglicana in 4
(4) Cassadaigua vs (29) Kriegiersien- Cassadaigua in 5
(5) Sarzonia vs (28) Terre Septentrionale- Sarzonia in 4
(6) Banija vs (27) The Greater Nordics- Banija in 3
(7) Ko-oren vs (26) Indusse- Ko-oren in 3
(8) Hampton Island vs (25) Schiltzberg- Hampton Island in 4
(9) Hapilopper vs (24) Northwest Kalactin- Hapilopper in 3
(10) TJUN-ia vs (23) West Phoenicia- TJUN-ia in 4
(11) Liventia vs (22) Royal Kingdom of Quebec- Quebec in 5
(12) Drawkland vs (21) Ethane- Drawkland in 4
(13) Quintessence of Dust vs (20) Abanhfleft- Quintessence of Dust in 5
(14) South Newlandia vs (19) Super-Llamaland- Super-Llamaland in 5
(15) Kohnhead vs (18) Tikariot- Tikariot in 5
(16) Ranoria vs (17) The Sherpa Empire- The Sherpa Empire in 4

Second Round:
(1) Newmanistan vs (17) The Sherpa Empire- Newmanistan in 5
(8) Hampton Island vs (9) Hapilopper- Hampton Island in 5
(4) Cassadaigua vs (13) Quintessence of Dust- Cassadaigua in 4
(5) Sarzonia vs (12) Drawkland- Sarzonia in 4
(6) Banija vs (22) Royal Kingdom of Quebec- Banija in 5
(3) Nova Anglicana vs (19) Super-Llamaland- Nova Anglicana in 5
(7) Ko-oren vs (10) TJUN-ia- TJUN-ia in 4
(2) Zwangzug vs (18) Tikariot- Zwangzug in 5

Quarterfinals:
(1) Newmanistan vs (8) Hampton Island- Newmanistan in 4
(4) Cassadaigua vs (5) Sarzonia- Cassadaigua in 5
(3) Nova Anglicana vs (6) Banija- Nova Anglicana in 4
(2) Zwangzug vs (10) TJUN-ia- TJUN-ia in 5

Semifinals:
(1) Newmanistan vs (4) Cassadaigua- Newmanistan in 5
(3) Nova Anglicana vs (10) TJUN-ia- Nova Anglicana in 4

Final:
Newmanistan vs Nova Anglicana- Newmanistan in 6 (Yes, I am being a homer)


The Rocket Report apologizes, somewhat, for the optimistic look at these playoffs.

[South Newlandia]

A WBC group stage review

South Newlandia has made it into the knockout rounds in Cassadaigua, home of the best baseball team in the multiverse at the moment. The Elephants finished second in group 7, with a record of 20 wins and 10 losses.

Zwangzug (31-ranked in the world, also two-time WBC champion)

The six games against the most accomplished team in the group, the two-time champs and 14-time semi-finalists from Zwangzug, were among the toughest for the team. Half of all South Newlandian losses came to the Zebras, as they finished 1-5 against them. Starting pitcher Ryan Hunter threw for an ERA of 7.58, allowing 24 runs over 28.5 innings (in South Newlandian calculations, you can only pitch a half of an inning, when you were in it, but do not finish it. That’s not an exact calculation, but it works for South Newlandian stats.) As you can see, Hunter usually left the mount early. The worst of them came in the 22nd game for South Newlandia, the third away at Zwangzug, when Hunter had allowed 4 runs to the second inning, with three walks and 5 hits. With two men on base and no one out in the second, Hunter headed for the bench. The Elephants ultimately lost 3-8. His best start was the 12th game, the second away at Zwangzug, which was also the only one South Newlandia won, thanks to the batters rallying and Hunter holding the Zebras to 3 runs over 6.5 innings. The Zebras were just as powerful as anyone expected them to be, and dominated South Newlandia in every way possible. They got themselves the second seed in the knockouts, and are the huge favourites against Chromatika now.

South Covello (19-ranked in the world)

Against South Covello, the Elephants earned their slot in the next round. Sansara was very correct in placing his ace here, as Conroy absolutely dominated the opposing batters. Throwing for an ERA of 1.26, allowing just 7 runs over 50 innings, he proved to be the best pitcher in South Newlandia. The big highlight of this was game number 23, when Conroy pitched a 10-inning shutout win, allowing just three walks and 4 hits and collected 14 strikeouts. Conroy has not allowed any runs in the last 22 games he pitched, after getting another complete game shutout five games later, this time in South Covello, on route to a 7-0 Elephants win that saw them through to the playoffs. In total, South Newlandia only lost the very first game in extra innings, and otherwise stayed steady for a 5-1 record. Despite that, South Covello managed to advance to the knockouts, gaining the very last slot, setting them up for a series with the Rockets.

Reçueçn (unranked)

The team with the Drawkian and the pony really gave the Elephants some unexpected trouble. Pitcher Jay Kramer did his best, finishing with an ERA of 4.43, 17 runs over 34.5 innings pitched. Despite his efforts, the Elephants blew two games in late innings, once in extra innings and once in the bottom of the ninth. Despite that, the Elephants won 4 of 6 games, with the highlight being a grand slam hit by Fabio Ventura in the 5th inning of the second home game against Recuecn. In game 1 in Recuecn, the Elephants went ahead in the top of the tenth, but a homer for two runs got the win to the West Pacific. Recuecn ultimately failed to advance on an 11-win record.

Maklohi Vai (unranked, three-time WBC finalists)

The Elephants had to admit that they never heard of that nation before; but they had been to the finals of the Classic three times before. Clearly, they weren’t what they once were anymore, as the Elephants easily dispatched them 5-1. Blake Robbins got himself a solid ERA of 3.65, allowing 16 runs in 39.5 innings. He had been very consistent throughout the series, allowing always at least two but never more than four runs. With the batters collecting five runs or more in every game but one, the Elephants held the edge, except for one time. Additionally, it took them extra innings in the first home game against them, but the Elephants eventually took it in ten. Maklohi Vai collected ten wins in total, and missed out on the playoffs.

Pleau (unranked)

Who are they? We have no idea. South Newlandia took five of six wins against them, and Pleau proved to be do-able for starting pitcher Larry Cain. Cain got himself an ERA of 2.79, with 13 runs over 42 innings. The only time when he collapsed, in the very first game against Pleau, the Elephants missed the win. Of course, the highlight of the matchup was game 15. At home, the Elephants struggled, with Cain allowing five runs in the first five innings and subsequently hitting the bench. The Elephants had only four runs to their name thanks to the second inning for a long time, and it didn’t look to good when the Elephants went into the bottom of the ninth trailing by one. Shawn Zimmerman got on base, and the equalizing run was underway. On a very rare South Newlandian base steal, he took second. After two outs, it was all on Daryl Dunlop. He hit a nice ball down the first baseline into Left Field, and Zimmerman was waved home. He narrowly beat the throw, and sent the game to extra innings. 10 innings turned into 12, 14, and eventually a 16th inning without a team scoring a run. Heading into the bottom of the 16th, the Elephants had an ideal setup. With Larsen and Ventura already on base and only one out, Adam King went into the batter’s box. On a 3-1 pitch, he swung, and the ball went right into the highest deck of the Elephant Stadium. The Elephants had won a 16-inning nail biter, and went through basically the entire bullpen in the process. Thankfully, the mid-break was next, and everyone was able to rest. In the very last game, South Newlandia easily took down Pleau 11-0, giving their opponents a total record of 8-22.

A look at some more stats


This line graph shows the win/loss progression for South Newlandia. As you can see, the Elephants got out to a really weak start, winning only three of the first eight games, but turned things around to win 15 of the next 18. The games against Zwangzug are clearly visible, being the almost clockwork losses every five games.


This graph shows all WBC teams, placed by wins (x-axis) and run differential (y-axis). Playoff teams are shown in green, while teams that missed out are red. Clearly, winning games helps to advance, and having a good run differential helps to win games. However, there are some interesting outliers that deserve a closer look. Right at the top right, you can see the Rockets. We are not sure if anyone can stop them, but they have been easily outdoing everyone else. A run differential of almost +100 and 26 wins sure are impressive. Meanwhile, the other side of the graph features the “worst team” of the Classic, a team with a run differential of -54 and only seven wins, and they are Sangti. The difficult draw that was group 7 certainly had to do with that, but the former semi-finalists really got unlucky. The other team on seven wins is one that should be known to South Newlandian baseball fans: Xanneria somehow achieved a 7-23 wins with a run differential of only -17. Teams qualified with a RD worse than that! Some of the most interesting outliers are the green dots in the middle of the red ones. Four teams qualified despite having 15 or fewer wins; all of them placing second in their group. The most interesting of them is Indusse. 14 wins and a run differential of -21 were enough for second; that’s what being in a group with the Rockets will do to you. The other teams cutting it close were West Phoenicia; Northwest Kalactin, another team that should be well-known to South Newlandian fans; and Schiltzberg, the 4-time Classic champions. Going back to the “green part” of the diagram, South Newlandias stats are shown in yellow, while the ones of Super-Llamaland are in black. Oh, those Tigers.

Round of 32: Elephants versus Tigers

One day, South Newlandia will advance to the knockouts of something without getting one of the toughest possible opponents in the first round. Today is not that day. The five-time World Baseball Classic champions from Super-Llamaland it is. They had an 18-12 record in group 9, finishing second behind Banija. Most notably, they got themselves 160 runs in the progress, three more than the Elephants had. Stopping them will certainly not be easy. Of course, this isn’t just any matchup. This is a regional duel; South Newlandia and Super-Llamaland are basically neighbours in Esportiva. Two South Newlandian clubs have Llamanean coaches, and Gabriel Acosta is about to transfer to the Masmow Dragons. The link; and; I think you could say, friendship, between the two nations makes this battle extremely interesting. On the one hand, there is the small, still almost unknown island that somehow ended up in twelfth in the rankings. On the other hand, there is the second-most successful WBC nation in history, the Tigers. They only recently returned to the scene, and they are not going to be giving up easily. According to Sansara, the pitching order will be as follows: “So, Hunter gets the first game. If we win, Kramer takes number two, if not, it’s Cain. If the series is tied at one, the other one gets the ball now, a two-nothing lead will see Robbins on the mount. If we lead 2-1 eventually, it is whoever is left between the three. If we ever have reached two losses, that’s when Conroy gets the ball. Otherwise, it’s just however is left. Super easy, right?”
According to various experts from various nations, the odds are basically even. Only one thing is for sure, this series will be a close one.

[Quintessence of Dust]

Since Quintessence of Dust first began establishing a presence on the Moon, many elderly Quodites have begun migrating. The purified air and low gravity are very amenable to those who find it difficult to breathe on Earth or struggle with brittle bones. And, with advances in medical science extending the average Quodite lifespan long past 100, it was easy to grow tired of Earth after a decade or three of retirement there. The regular lunar shuttle from the Eastling Spaceport has even acquired the nickname “The Silver Needle” in reference to the greying hair of its average passenger load. Entrepreneurs were quick to set up villages, some painstakingly recreating neighborhoods Highmark City, New Cleethorpes, and Nowy Orpington, only with more benches in the parks (and fewer ethnic food stalls); others thought big and bold, constructing elaborate new structures, linked by turbolift and laying on every amenity imaginable, like a docked cruise ship on the lunar surface. Today, Moon Base Q is home to many comfortable retirement communities.

This is not one of them.

The children peered into the rusting iron shack with some trepidation. (In truth, the oxygen rich atmosphere exacerbates rusting – the corrugated iron sheets weren’t particularly old, but the children weren’t to know that.) Silver spider webs hung in every corner, collecting lunar dust. From the dark recesses a cough so tremulous and frail it sounded like long nails rapping on a delicate wine glass signalled that ‘Grandma’ was awake.

She was not their Grandma. She had outlived their Grandma – and the children thought she was probably her Grandma.

“Grandma?” said the boy, cringeing back: he’d only whispered but the tinny shack made his voice echo like he’d struck a gong.

There was no answer, but after a time a flicker of light showed. The children murmured. Smoking was dangerous in the oxygen rich bubble. Their friends at what was inexplicably called Moon School told them horror stories about old people lighting up cigarettes and going up like candles. But their horror stories didn’t work on Grandma. She kept smoking. The girl told her brother it wasn’t even a cigarette. Smelled different.

They entered the cabin and made their way to the back. There they encountered a woman so impossibly old and tiny that she resembled a forgotten walnut. Metallic pink hair reached down to her waist, immaculately combed. Her dress was pretty and floral. Her skin, though wrinkled a thousand times over, was clean and her nails trimmed. Age had dulled her eyesight – she had to press her nose to each cheek in order to aim a sticky kiss that tasted of cherries and almonds – and reduced her fingers to arthritic claws. But not robbed her of her dignity.

“What a pretty dress, Sumiko.”

The girl’s name was not Sumiko and she was wearing pants, but she thanked Grandma all the same. The boy was busy staring, as he always did, at the wall. The picture of Grandpa and Grandma, faded by 100 years or more of age. He was so big and strong, happy and beaming, with Grandma – yes, that young woman was Grandma! - dangling from his mighty shoulders. Not-Sumiko nudged him and he remembered.

“Grandma, we brought you what you asked for.”

They offered it to her, guiding into her lap the brown bag. She complained, as she always did, about how it didn’t rustle like a paper bag, even though there hadn’t been paper bags in decades. The children nodded, as they always did, yes Grandma, we’ll get a proper one next time. From the bag, she withdrew a small, glowing canister. The jet pack riders discarded them at the fuelling station, and the children scampered around collecting up any that still had a little glow to them.

Grandma took the canister into a hand, closing bulging knuckles around it, and shook it. Her whole body rattled with the effort. The canister glowed brighter, and brighter, until the inside of the shack began to light up. In the corners the children could see empty canisters, cob-webbed. Suddenly, with a surprisingly fluid motion, Grandma snapped the canister’s head off and brought it up to her wizened face as the vapour expelled. She huffed in deeply. Soon the coughing began, her whole body trembling with the exertion. Gradually she slumped down into her chair, her eyes drooping.

The boy broke the silence.

“Grandma, what do you see?”

I see…

Her voice was stronger but also higher-pitched. Ethereal, like a wind keening in from another world.

I see rockets, soaring over coconuts.

I see cabbages tumbling from a mighty mountain.

I see zebras, trampling through the rainbow.

I see owls and pandas locked in battle.

I see lions, rampant.

I see elephants, stampeding llamas… no… tigers…

I see fillies, galloping, unstoppable.

I see a field of glittering stars.

I see red kites, vanquished by giants.

I see more lions, a fiercer pride still.

I see grim reapers scything through red and gold.

I see a swarm of dragonflies a-flutter.

I see jaguars with fangs bloody and bared.

I see golden bears, roaring, tearing into a … burger?

I see thrashers … thrashing.

I … see …

Grandma’s words had grown more and more confused, her voice gradually becoming quieter as her brow furrowed. But on the tip of her tongue, the children could see, one last word. They leaned in, Not-Sumiko clutching her brother’s arm so tight, neither of them daring to breathe.

Things…

[The Royal Kingdom of Quebec]

OOC : First of probably 20+ part series coming up.

The Tageukgi

Special Series : Brief History of Quebecois High School Baseball

Part 1 - The Dragon and the Lion : The Initial Years of Quebecois Gogyoyagu

Asher C. Lundrigan

QUEBEC CITY, CAPITALE-NATIONALE - The perks of being one of very few internationally-active Korean-language newspapers come with large international viewership, whom are naturally interested in reading our materials. That said, we are often being asked by our subscribers abroad and far, of all age groups, about the intricate nature and long histories of Quebecois high school baseball. High school baseball, given its particular nature and also the logistical restrictions imposed by finances, isn't as mainstream or vogue in most other countries.

So, starting today, The Taegukgi looks on the 130 years of high school baseball in Quebec, looking at its history and how it has and continues to draw people to the Quebecois secondary students, whose stories, moments, victories and losses heavily contribute into the fabric of the nation and the Quebecois Commonwealth. Today, we will start with the very first year of the high school baseball in Quebec, and talk about its first decade (1918-1928).

Introduction

So, what is Quebecois High School Baseball, or Gogyoyagu?

In Royal Kingdom of Quebec, high school baseball (고교야구) is generally referred to the five national tournaments played by Quebecois high schools (and in past, Dominions) that culminated with the championships held from March to June in Montreal (Cheongryonggi and Eundanpoonggyi) and Quebec City (Hwangjebae, Bonghwanggi and Hwanggeumsajagyi). While traditionally organised by the Quebecois High School Baseball Association (QHSBA), an organisation directly under the orders of Royal Quebecois Baseball Federation (RQBF), the five tournaments also run in association with five different national newspapers:

• Le Mazepa (French-language, Quebec City) : 皇帝杯 全國高校野球大會 (His/Her Majesty’s National High School Baseball Championship)
• The National Gazette (English-language, Montreal) : 靑龍旗 全國高校野球 選手權大會 (Blue Dragon National High School Baseball Championship)
• The Commonwealth Telegraph (English-language, Quebec City) : 鳳凰大旗 全國高敎野球大會 (Golden Dragon National High School Baseball Championship)
• La Presse Centrale (French-language, Montreal) : 은단풍기 고교야구 선수권대회 (Silver Leaf National High School Baseball Championship)
• The Taegukgi (Korean-language, Quebec City) : 黃金獅子旗 全國高校野球大會 (Golden Lion National High School Baseball Championship)

Usually marked as one of the major sporting events of the country (partly thanks to its lack of scheduling conflict with College football and limited overlap with College Hockey, two major college sports), the five nationwide events (and the provincial championship that serve as their qualifiers) enjoy high popularity across the country. While the indicator or extent of its popularity remains challenged due to the vast territory the Calanian nation covers, it is regrdless to note that its popularity remains particularly engrained in smaller towns and regions without a professional baseball team (usually meaning QBO or its minor-league affiliates).

Due to heavily local and regional nature of Quebecois collegiate sports until college/major junior level, 'the five' (with preference given to the two oldest tournaments) have enjoyed strong local following. The provincial championships, which do serve as qualification events (save few at-large spots reserved every tournament), are viewed with preliminary interest (mostly limited within schools and towns) in February, and all the tournament matches are available either on Quebecois Broadcasting Corportation (QBC) or True North Sports (TNS). Naturally, thousands of fans, both alumni and locals, come to cheer for their respective schools at the heart of Montreal and Quebec City. In some years, some schools (normally the powerhouses or traditional names) come to the Metropoles twice or thrice, while others come once every year or even longer, making this a particular personal and community tradition.

The First Ever : 1918 Cheongryonggyi

The history of organised baseball in Quebecois school level dates well beyond 1918, all the way to the 1893 when first official series were held between the Lycee Alexandre-III and Lycee-de-Levis, two of the earliest schools to have played baseball in the country. That said, prior to 1918, the high school baseball remained regional, with provincial championships being maintained by the regional and municipal newspapers. Eventually, the RQBF, then led by George Gordon Wiseman, 7th Lord Essendon, had noticed that the popularity of it may warrantee running of greater organisation. So, it came down to Lord Essendon, being longtime friends with Marcus Shin and Cedrick A. McCaul, the respective editor-in-chief for The Taegukgi and The National Gazette, who persuaded both newspapers to come up with national championship, and both had agreed. Both Shin and McCaul, with particular penchant for Cheongryong (blue dragon- symbol of the 7th Regiment that Shin had served earlier in his life as a soldier) and Hwanggeumsaja (golden lion - family crest), had named their competitions as such. This was followed by a stamp of approval followed after another, and then boom. All's good to go.

For the inaugural nation, sixteen schools were 'invited' to both Cheongryonggyi and Hwanggeumsajagyi. Part of the reason behind such small numbers for a country then numbering 42 million was the uncertainty surrounding its survival, as well as not every province having a complete set of provincial championships to qualify for. Eventually this would change, as the popularity grew and whatnot, but for first decade, both tournaments remained invitational and not truly qualification-based.

For the Cheongryonggyi, to be held in Adelphi Park, Montreal, peculiar efforts were done to place the big names here. The Lycée-Koreana, the preparatory school long famous for its affiliation with the Koreana Society on Northeast of the Metropolis, were guaranteed. Likewise were the case with the three Lycees in Quebec City area, eternal rivals in Alexandre-III and Saindon-Centrale Lycees (long renamed Frederick-Sullivan in year 1951), and the original powerhouse Lycee-de-Levis, and the Western Quebec High School in Val d'Or was among the four invitees. The rest, through a series of letters and careful decisionmaking process, were eventually selected by March 1, and then now you had the pool of 16 schools, vying for the first ever national glory.

To be continued tomorrow...

[United Hemand Insia]

HC in yelling voice:

"YOU GUYS SOLD IT IN THE GROUP STAGE! WE COULD HAVE QUALIFIED, BUT YOU ALL CHOKED IT! YOU BOTTLED BETTER THAN PEPSI OR COCA-COLA CAN DO ON THEIR BEST DAYS! I AM SO DISAPPOINTED IN YOU ALL! YOU ALL BETTER USE THIS AS MOTIVATION FOR NEXT TOURNAMENT, OR YOU BEST BELIEVE YOU'RE GETTING CUT! NOW, 500 SWINGS AT CURVEBALLS FOR ALL OF YOU! NOW!

[Chromatika]

Five Reasons Why Chromatika Will Lose to Zwangzug in the WBC

1. The Record.

Zwangzug finished 24-6, the second best finish in the entire competition. Chromatika finished 31st, limping in at 17-13. Zwangzug won seven more games than Chromatika, and there's almost no reason to expect otherwise from one of the favorites to win the whole thing.

2. The History.

Zwangzug has been around the baseball scene for a long time, and have been there, and done that. Chromatika has only been around recently, and this will be their first playoff experience in three cycles.

3. The Structure.

Chromatika lacks a centralized governing organization for baseball (The CBL is actually run by the owners, with no commissioner yet) and the players are still semi-professional amateurs. This is not the case for Zwangzug.

4. The Momentum.

Nobody expects the Chromatiks to make it past this round, not even their own fans. This backward momentum will be detrimental to them.

5. Everything Else.

No, really. Can you find even one reason why the Chromatiks even have an outside chance? Zwangzug is obviously the better team. The faster we acknowledge that and move on, the better it'll be - we shouldn't expect this roster to beat Zwangzug, so don't.

One Reason Why Chromatika Might Beat Zwangzug

Until you measure up against your opponent, face them on the pitch, the field, the stadium... You never know. That is the beauty of sports. You just can never tell.

Honestly, if this squad doesn't get 3-0'ed, it'd be a victory...

[Super-Llamaland]

PREVIEW: CAN TIGERS BEAT THE ELEPHANTS IN RETURN TO RO32?

After an unremarkable but SOLID group stage characterized by the team going 0-6 against BANIJA, their only competition for the group title, the Tigers snagged the nineteenth seed and will face their Esportivan neighbors in the ROUND OF 32 here in CASSADAIGUA. Can WINSTON YI and SUMMER HUANG lead Super-Llamaland to an upset victory, or will the more highly-ranked SOUTH NEWLANDIA ELEPHANTS take it home? In this COMPREHENSIVE PREVIEW, our TOP SPORTS ANALYSTS break down whether or not the Tigers can advance to the Round of 16 to face NOVA ANGLICANA or DASKEL. CAN THEY DO IT?

By: Multiple Contributors (LBC Baseball, LBC Sports, LSN, Llama Sports Today!, The Daily Llama, The Vargas Inquirer, TenNinetyThree, and GraphsForFans)

no

[Cassadaigua]

Round of 32:

(1) Newmanistan vs (32) South Covello @ Five Star Mobile Stadium, Brattleboro

Game 1:

South Covello                0 2 1 0 0 0 0 0 0  3
Newmanistan                  0 1 0 1 0 0 0 4 X  6

Game 2:

South Covello                0 0 0 0 3 0 0 2 0  5
Newmanistan                  1 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0  2

series tied, 1-1

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

Game 1:

Chromatika                   0 1 0 0 0 3 0 0 0  4
Zwangzug                     1 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0  2

Game 2:

Chromatika                   0 0 0 0 2 0 0 0 0  2
Zwangzug                     0 3 0 0 0 0 1 2 X  6

series tied, 1-1

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

Game 1:

Daskel                       0 0 1 0 1 4 0 0 0  6
Nova Anglicana               0 1 0 0 0 1 0 1 0  3

Game 2:

Daskel                       0 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0  2
Nova Anglicana               1 0 1 0 0 1 0 0 X  3

series tied, 1-1

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

Game 1:

Kriegiersien           0 0 0 0 2 0 0 4 2  8
Cassadaigua            0 0 0 4 0 0 0 0 1  5

Game 2:

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

series tied, 1-1

(5) Sarzonia vs (28) Terre Septentrionale @ Winchester City Lottery Stadium, Winchester

Game 1:

Terre Septentrionale         0 0 0 1 0 0 0 1 0  2
Sarzonia                     0 0 2 0 0 0 2 0 X  4

Game 2:

Terre Septentrionale         0 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0  2
Sarzonia                     0 3 0 0 0 0 0 0 X  3

Sarzonia leads series, 2-0

(6) Banija vs (27) The Greater Nordics @ Cocoa-bo Stadium, Starksville

Game 1:

The Greater Nordics          4 0 0 3 0 2 1 2 0 12
Banija                       1 0 1 0 2 0 0 3 1  8

Game 2:

The Greater Nordics          1 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0  2
Banija                       0 1 0 2 0 0 0 0 X  3

series tied, 1-1

(7) Ko-oren vs (26) Indusse @ University of Concord Heights Stadium, Concord Heights

Game 1:

Indusse                      0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 1  2
Ko-oren                      0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 2  3

Game 2:

Indusse                      0 1 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0  2
Ko-oren                      0 0 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 2  4

Ko-oren leads series, 2-0

(8) Hampton Island vs (25) Schiltzberg @ Brattleboro University Stadium, Brattleboro

Game 1:

Schiltzberg                  0 0 0 0 2 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1  4
Hampton Island               0 0 1 0 0 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 2  5

Game 2:

Schiltzberg                  0 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 0  2
Hampton Island               1 0 0 0 2 0 1 0 X  4

Hampton Island leads series 2-0

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

Game 1:

Northwest Kalactin           0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0  1
Hapilopper                   0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0  0

Game 2:

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

series tied, 1-1

(10) TJUN-ia vs (23) West Phoenicia @ New Lakeland Business School Stadium, New Lakeland

Game 1:

West Phoenicia               0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0  0
TJUN-ia                      0 2 8 3 0 1 0 0 X 14

Game 2:

West Phoenicia               0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0  1
TJUN-ia                      1 0 1 0 1 1 0 4 X  8

TJUN-ia leads series, 2-0


(11) Liventia vs (22) Royal Kingdom of Quebec @ Cassgo Stadium, Victoriaville

Game 1:

Royal Kingdom of Quebec      2 0 0 1 0 0 1 0 0  4
Liventia                     0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0  1

Game 2:

Royal Kingdom of Quebec      0 0 0 0 0 0 2 0 0  2
Liventia                     0 2 0 2 2 0 0 0 X  6

series tied, 1-1

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

Game 1:

Ethane                       0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0  1
Drawkland                    0 0 0 0 0 0 0 3 X  3

Game 2:

Ethane                       0 2 0 3 1 0 0 0 0  6
Drawkland                    0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0  1

series tied, 1-1

(13) Quintessence of Dust vs (20) Abanhfleft @ Concord Heights Beauty School Stadium, Concord Heights

Game 1:

Abanhfleft                   0 0 2 0 0 0 0 0 0  2
Quintessence of Dust         0 0 1 0 0 1 0 0 2  4

Game 2:

Abanhfleft                   3 0 0 2 1 0 0 1 0  7
Quintessence of Dust         0 0 2 0 2 0 0 3 1  8

Quintessence of Dust leads series, 2-0

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

Game 1:

Super-Llamaland              0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0  1
South Newlandia              0 2 0 0 1 0 0 0 X  3

Game 2:

Super-Llamaland              6 0 0 1 1 0 1 4 0 13
South Newlandia              0 0 0 0 1 0 3 0 2  6

series tied, 1-1

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

Game 1:

Tikariot                     0 0 1 2 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 1  5
Kohnhead                     0 0 0 0 0 0 0 4 0 0 0 0 3  7

Game 2:

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

series tied, 1-1

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

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

series tied, 1-1