World Baseball Classic 51 – Everything Thread (IC)

[Tikariot]

Tikariot is riding off into the darkness with the cutoff and lays it into the hands of the "Army of the Night"...

Quarterfinals

#16 The Sherpa Empire vs #8 Hapilopper
@ Dolphin Stadium (Newport), South Newlandia

Game 1
The Sherpa Empire      0 1 0 0 0 0 1 0 2  4
Hapilopper             0 0 3 0 0 0 0 0 0  3

Game 2
Hapilopper             0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 1  2
The Sherpa Empire      0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0  1

Series tied at 1-1

#15 Super-Llamaland vs #7 South Newlandia
@ Ratzupalfu Arena (Ratzupalfu), South Newlandia

Game 1
Super-Llamaland        1 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0  2
South Newlandia        0 1 3 0 0 0 2 0 X  6

Game 2
South Newlandia        0 0 0 0 3 1 8 1 0 13
Super-Llamaland        2 0 1 0 0 0 0 3 1  7

South Newlandia leads series 2-0

[Banija]

Banija takes 2-0 series lead in WBC 51 Quarterfinal matchup with Kohnhead


Banijans celebrate Game 1 walkoff victory in extras

TIKARIOT CITY, DHAENCUNOR, TIKARIOT- The familiar Group 8 mates would meet in the Quarterfinals- Banija and Kohnhead. And it would be Banija who would gain the advantage over the course of the opening two games, with a walkoff victory in Game 1 leading to a blowout victory in Game 2 that would give our boys a stranglehold on the series, and bring us one step closer to the Semifinals.

Let's get right to it then? Game 1 would see Ralphie Bloggs get on the mound for Kohnhead, against Suntukung Kandeh for our squad. Ousman Kakay talked about the importance of our pitching getting off to a strong start. Both pitchers did, with neither team getting any runs in the first three innings, although both had a couple of baserunners. Kohnhead would start to get to our southpaw in the bottom of the fourth, however. A leadoff single by Monica Ratliff had the potential to spell trouble, and it did. Callie Dudley, their cleanup hitter, went up 2-0 in the count and then took a fastball way out of here in the Tikariot capitol. Dudley went yard, and Kohnhead led 2-0.

Fortunately, Kandeh is a veteran. He wasn't going to let that rattle him- although we were still down 2-0. He got back into his groove. Ralphie Bloggs was in a groove of his own. We had a leadoff double of our own in the bottom half of the fourth. A routine fly ball from Momodou Joof was dropped by young left fielder Alvin Clayton, which allowed Joof to slide into second. It was ruled an error. A Cyper Kandeh ground out to second brought Joof to third base, and a sac fly to deep right by Yakuba Kah brought the run home. 2-1 after four innings.

Both starters continued to maintain their dominance. Suntukung Kandeh ended up lasting seven innings. Down 2-1 in game 1, we brought out our normal 8th inning guy, Bouba Kujabi, to pitch the 8th inning. And he did well. Bloggs, who had thrown 101 pitches, came back on the mound in the 8th. He was dealing- so the manager's decision was sound. Only one unearned run through 7. Down one, we'd only need one swing of the bat in the bottom of the 8th. And we got it. Jung Jassey got all of a hanging curveball from Bloggs, and Banijan fans exploded as the solo home run tied the game at 2. Instead of a potential save situation in the 9th, it was now tied at 2.

Bloggs would finish the 8th. Kohnhead's ace had an excellent game- 8 innings, 2 runs(1 earned). And yet, no decision. Tough luck. Kujabi pitched the 9th inning as well for us, and then we brought on Sama Kinte to pitch the 10th. But we wouldn't need any more pitchers after that. Jasmine Millington entered the mound for Kohnhead in the 10th. Cyper Kandeh led off the inning with a single. The winning run at 1st, even though he was our best hitter, was not a great baserunner. Ousman Kakay bet heavily here- removing Cyper from the game for Ifeatu Chee. And it would prove to be the right decision. Yakuba Kah was next up, and struck out. Then, Malik Solely came up. He laced one into the gap in left center. Ifeatu Chee was racing around the basepaths from first base. Alvin Clayton fielded it cleanly, and relayed to short. Banija's third base coach waved Chee home.

Kohnhead shortstop Jessie Cherry relayed the throw home, and it was a perfect throw, on a line. But Ifeatu Chee had a fantastic jump off the bag, and slid in just before the tag was applied. It was a bang bang play at the plate, but Chee was safe! The Banijan bench poured onto the field to celebrate Solely's walkoff RBI double, and Chee's fantastic baserunning. "Oh my gosh, what a feeling." Solely told an on-field reporter in the immediate aftermath. "Everyone dreams of this right? Hitting a walkoff deep in the playoffs. I loved-" And at that moment of his interview, he was pied in the face by a teammate. What a moment for the young superstar.

Game 2 saw our own ace, Duta Condé, take the mound. It was a fantastic game for fans of Banijan baseball. We were able to chase Fletcher Crouch in the top of the second, having already allowed four runs, and force them to go deep into their bullpen early. With that much run support, Ousman Kakay was going to ride his starter. The veteran starting pitcher had yet another legendary night in a Banijan uniform, throwing a complete game victory. The win was 8-1. Duta Condé had a stunning 11 strikeouts, alongside 4 hits given up, no walks, and one earned run.

We've got the momentum. Four consecutive wins here in the knockout stages, dating back to games 3 & 4 of the Newmanistan series. Banija's first semifinal appearance since WBC 47 seems to be calling. Can Ensa Suso put Kohnhead away today and clinch a trip to Avanaroch?

[South Newlandia]

Cutoff for the South Newlandian half, Quarterfinals, Games 3 and 4! This is my 18th cutoff of the tournament. There is no context today.


Quarterfinals

#13 Banija vs #21 Kohnhead
@ Dhaendome (Tikariot City, Dhaencunor), Tikariot

Game 3 
Kohnhead               0 2 0 0 1 0 0 0 0  3
Banija                 4 0 3 0 0 1 0 0 X  8

Banija wins series 3-0

#11 Sarzonia vs #19 Zwangzug
@ The Cavern (Oriannor, Khazagh), Tikariot

Game 3
Zwangzug               1 0 0 1 0 1 0 0 0  3
Sarzonia               2 1 0 0 0 1 0 1 X  5

Sarzonia wins series 3-0

Despite there being no games tomorrow, there will be a formal cutoff, giving all teams the opportunity to get as many RPs in as the teams on the other side. Until then, Tikariot and I will also have figured out what semifinal happens where: After all, Sarzonia will play the winner between SNL and Super-Llamaland in the semifinals, while Banija will play either Sherpaland or Hapilopper.

[The Sherpa Empire]

Going into the quarterfinals of the WBC, the Sherpas were on a 10 game winning streak. The last time they'd lost was a game against Bardney all the way back in the group stage. Sarki Sachdeva and Daki Chuan hadn't pitched for a couple of weeks -- though they'd thrown some practice to keep from getting too rusty.

Before the first game against Hapilopper, Changyi Ihawa asked Tianling Qiao a question about the streak. "Hey, don't jinx it!" Qiao answered.

Fast forward to the ninth inning. The Sherpas were down to their last out, and it looked like their win streak was about to end. Hapilopper was ahead by a run, 3-2. But it was not over yet...

Qu hit a line drive into right field and hussled his ass off to beat the throw to first. In post-game highlights, the reporters on SISN would say they could not remember the last time any of them had seen Qu run that fast. He looked like he was more than ready to run over Levi Berry or headbutt the obnoxious Hapiloppian out of the way if that was what it took to reach base.

Qiao worked the count to 3-1, then hit one out to the warning track. The ball ricocheted off the bottom of the wall, where Melvin Pemberton scooped it up -- too late to throw Qiao out, but not too late to hold Qu at 3rd.

As Kumari stepped up to the plate, the score was still 3-2, but the mood in the stadium had changed. With men on 2nd and 3rd, the Sherpa fans were starting to get excited and the Hapiloppians were starting to get nervous. Kumari swung at the first pitch and made contact with a solid thwack. The reaction in both dugouts was immediate. Everyone could guess what was going to happen. The ball came down in the grass, Qu and Qiao both scored, and the Sherpas took the lead.

Zhiku Tsongba struck out to end the half-inning, but the bats had already done what they needed to do. Roshan held the Haps scoreless in the bottom of the 9th, and the Sherpas won 4-3, extending their winning streak to 11 games.

But the Hapiloppians would have their revenge in game 2. Akunjee had a good start, throwing 7 scoreless innings, but the bats had been quiet and the Sherpa bullpen could not hold onto their 1 run lead. The Sherpas' winning streak was broken and now they had a fight on their hands...

[Sarzonia]

Alton Long was beginning to feel left out.

He was the number five starter for the Sarzonian national baseball team, which relegated him to the bullpen as soon as the knockout rounds began. He pitched in one match and was a disaster.

Now, with Sarzonia enjoying a two games to none series lead against Zwangzug in the quarterfinals of the 51st edition of the World Baseball Classic, Stars manager Geoff Yancey decided to give his soft-tossing lefty a chance to start against the Zebras.

"It's just another start," pitching coach Nolan Channing told Long. Bullshit!, Long thought, but opted not to reply. He took a couple of deep breaths and did his best to relax. "No pressure!" Catcher Matt Lopez said as he patted Long on the top of his back just below his neck.

That's why Sackey's my personal catcher, Long thought with a grimace. Pat Sakata and Long had a natural chemistry from the first time they worked together. The times Long was most effective was with the reserve catcher as his battery mate. However, Yancey didn't see fit to keep the two working together nearly often enough for Long's tastes.

This time, however, it was Sakata who was behind the dish and not Lopez. Even though Lopez was available, Yancey decided to give Sakata the starting nod. Long gave up a leadoff walk and then a double to shortstop Greg Callan-Milton drove home right fielder Frances Wake to give the Zebras the early lead.

However, leftfielder Jodie Schein singled with one out, centrefielder Ryan Brady walked, then after a Luke Brinkley pop up and a walk to rightfielder Kenny Evans, first baseman Cody Frazier singled past the diving Maia Solloway at third to plate Schein and Brady. Long threw two scoreless frames before catcher Josefina Gomez tagged a 3-1 fastball and drove it over the left field wall to draw the Zebras within a run in the fourth inning. They drew level in the sixth courtesy of a Wake homer, but Brinkley tagged relief pitcher Xiaodong Jia to the deepest part of the ballpark.

Carnie Weston, Scott Lassiter and Tyrell Douglass came on from there to close out the Zebras and Sarzonia advanced to its first semifinals since the Stars won WBC 18. The team celebrated wildly in the clubhouse, even with a possible match up against the other co-hosts South Newlandia or Super Llamaland in the offing. Match up details would be worked out later, but Yancey was firm about the first three starting pitchers in the semifinals.

Jeff Parrish, Mark Conroy, and Jamie Pearson would start the three games. Yancey said if Game 4 was necessary, it would depend whether Sarzonia was leading or trailing the series.

In the meantime, Sarzonia could celebrate one night and rest another. The hard work loomed ahead.

[Super-Llamaland]

Excerpts from Today's Pregame Interviews (Super-Llamaland Tigers, WBC51 Quarterfinals Game 3, Ratzupalfu):

---

Isaac Oladipo, MANAGER
(On his decision not to pull Kai Söderstrom after the sixth inning of a game two loss) "You know, I'm a firm believer in my starting pitchers and their ability to pitch out of jams. Even though he'd given up the four runs before that - who knew Perez was such a good hitter? - he'd been doing relatively well except for a few mistakes, and we felt that we could trust him to finish the seventh and get the game to our bullpen for the last two innings while still tied. Sometimes that leads to eight-run innings, but a lot of the times, and this is what the media should be focusing on, it doesn't." (when asked if he would handle Genevieve Strauss, who allowed nine runs in an inning to Hapilopper in the group stage, similarly) "Of course I would. Giving up that many runs in an inning is a once-in-a-Classic event. Well, twice in this Classic." (when asked about a different group stage performance when six runs were conceded in one inning) "Fine, three times in this Classic. The point is, it won't happen tomorrow, we'll make sure of it."

---

Genevieve Strauss, STARTING PITCHER
(On how she would describe her performances in the WBC playoffs) "Kick-ass." (When asked to elaborate) "No."

---

Kris Headley, RELIEF PITCHER
(unprompted) "...just absolutely horrible for the fans and for the players. It would do nothing except line the owners' pockets even more than the existing restructuring proposals already do. We saw how the merger of our league with Abanhfleft's back in the day ended up, and the fact that people haven't learned their lessons shows how out of touch they are. Unless we were talking about the SuperLleague, two Ls, because that one's cool. Sorry, what were we talking about?" (When prompted again with the question, which was "how do you feel about your team's chances tonight?") "Do you think I'm going to say we're going to lose? What are you expecting to happen here?"

---

Alana Gonzalez, INFIELDER
(on sabermetric criticisms of her style of play) "I think what they're missing is the deeper peripherals. Some versions of Wins Above Replacement, like the one you just mentioned, are based off of your actual performance between seasons, but others are based off of more detailed statistics about your actual underlying numbers, and the newest Llamanean models that use batted-ball exit velocity data actually have me ahead of some of the players you just mentioned, especially since last year was a down year for me BABIP Luck-wise. Another thing is that we really haven't properly quantified defensive impact yet with our current understanding of sabermetrics, and so the negative impact those guys claim I have is disputable. That's another way these WAR metrics distinguish themselves, and without the level of nuance you get from looking at multiple defensive metrics, it's hard to make those kinds of claims in sufficient detail." (When asked to provide a shorter, more provocative statement) "Uh, suck it, nerds."

---

Derrick Armstrong, CATCHER
(On how much a quarterfinals run would mean for the team) "Not really, no. I mean, if we got knocked out in the quarterfinals in the thirties or forties, people would be really disappointed. I don't think the fans have caught on to how competitive the modern WBC is, because the expectations for us are still at that finals or bust level." (On whether a semifinal appearance would mean more) "Let's wait until after these two games, okay?"

---

Tyson Long, OUTFIELDER
(On recent allegations that he'd been caught wandering the streets of Ratzupalfu late at night before Game Two, half-naked and holding a six-pack of absinthe (these aren't commercially sold in Super-Llamaland, it's believed that he just attached six absinthe fountains with a hot glue gun) that he'd somehow gotten into his team luggage, while asking terrified passers-by if they were aware of any "Quebecois-style nightclubs" in the area that he could visit) "No comment."

[Zwangzug]

--DO NOT REDISTRIBUTE WITHOUT PERMISSION FROM CYBORG OUTSIDE COUNSEL--

"Social credit" schemes plagued by absence of social ties

Preliminary research (Phases I-II) into the feasibility of setting up a pervasive, electronically-mediated system to incentivize progroup behavior has met with disappointing results, with many participants showing little evidence of influence and some even displaying recalcitrance. Analysis of the failure of this intervention remains ongoing, but a prominent theory involves a paucity of warm and affectionate relationships to fall under threat.

"As the Schiltzberg scholar Dylan Roberts once said, 'when you ain't got nothin', you got nothin' to lose,'" reports G-93-LL2. "While notifying users' contacts on social networks of reactionary behavior may seem a deterrent, it turns out that when your social-network contacts are some neighbors you haven't spoken to since high school, occasional work-study colleagues from college, and/or uncomfortably creepy hobbyist acquaintances, you continue just as you were."

"We considered the well-known maxim 'snitches get stitches' to be overrated and not predictive," adds N36-HK3. "And indeed, we do not suspect individuals' reluctance to inform on their wrongthinking comrades to be due to fear of physical retaliation. However, it appears that rising in the esteem of inscrutable, volatile algorithms that dictate a complex and ever-shifting code of behavior is insufficient motivation to collaborate with our experiments."

"That the experiment ran as long as it did is a testament to some users' refusal to alter their preferred forms of content consuming or expressing opinions in spite of nudges," explains 0O1I2Z. "And the fact that the Zebras kept coming back from 2-0 down, that kind of wrecked havoc with our schedules."

"Will there be a follow-up study? Given how many published findings fail to be reproduced, I think it would be useful," opines C71-80D. "Then again, it might be a waste of resources. I mean, look at the control group. The typical Zebras' fan is already about as neurotic a nerd as you can get."

--DO NOT REDISTRIBUTE WITHOUT PERMISSION FROM CYBORG OUTSIDE COUNSEL--

[Tikariot]

Tikariot is cutting off and "All Hell is Breaking Loose?"

Quarterfinals

#16 The Sherpa Empire vs #8 Hapilopper
@ Dolphin Stadium (Newport), South Newlandia

Game 3
The Sherpa Empire      0 1 0 0 3 0 1 0 0  5
Hapilopper             0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0  1

Game 4
Hapilopper             0 0 0 2 0 0 0 1 0  3
The Sherpa Empire      0 1 1 2 0 2 1 0 X  7

The Sherpa Empire wins series 3-1

#15 Super-Llamaland vs #7 South Newlandia
@ Ratzupalfu Arena (Ratzupalfu), South Newlandia

Game 3
Super-Llamaland        0 1 0 1 0 0 2 0 0 0 0  4
South Newlandia        1 0 0 0 1 2 0 0 0 0 1  5

South Newlandia wins series 3-0

[Banija]

Banija's WBC title window, thought to be closed, pried wide open with quarterfinal sweep of Kohnhead

AVANAROCH, PALADON, TIKARIOT- I guess it starts with a useful explanation of the metaphor. What, exactly, is a title window? Not necessarily terminology used everyday. It's a time frame, over multiple seasons/competitions, when you are considered a legitimate, serious contender to contend for a championship. Most often used in franchise sports league, like the Gridiron Football League of Banija(GFLB), where title windows come and go. Still useful in other sports leagues, like soccer leagues. Look at Kitara Athletic Association bust through its title window, winning a S-FPL title and then following that up with winning the freaking Champions League. Some title windows are always open(see- Raynor City United or Brinemouth), and some never do(see the Busoga Islands).

Banija's title window hasn't really been open in baseball until WBC 46. Never really made an extended run in this tournament before then, never a serious contender. Good, but not great. That all changed in WBC 45, when we bombed out in the group stages. The Olympic Committee of Banija decided it was time for a change, as we fired our Ethane manager Raymond Cloutier, and hired Ousman Kakay. He propped open the title window in WBC 46, when we shocked the world, upsetting Sherpaland on their home soil, 3 games to 1, in the quarterfinals of that very tournament. Although we fell in the semifinals, it was clear- the window was open, and we would be back.

We came back and won the title in WBC 47. Lost our first two games of our Round of 16 series against the Appalachian Nation, then proceeded to not lose again for the rest of the tournament. Our record in the knockouts of that tournament? '13 and won'. We've been contenders ever since. In WBC 48, we lost in 5 games to Sherpaland. In WBC 49, we lost in 5 games to Sherpaland again. The window still open. But then, came WBC 50. We had a solid tournament. Won our group. Got to the quarterfinals. Took on Nova Anglicana. Got dominated and lost the series in 4 games, 3-1. Our only win was an 11th winning walkoff, while they notched both 9-2 and 8-2 blowout victories.

Even though we had gotten to the quarterfinals, it was clear for that tournament- the gap between Banija and Nova Anglicana was wide. And wider events reinforced that. That ended up being the second time in the last three tournaments that Nova Anglicana, Cassadaigua, and Newmanistan, all longtime powers in this sport, all finished in the top three spots. In Banija, the thought was clear. Even though we were 4th in the ranks, right behind them, we were a distant fourth. Then, Isaac Oladipo, long considered the heir apparent to Ousman Kakay, left to take the Super Llamaland job. Although it's hard to read too much into that- their national team job is a more prestige one than ours, despite our recent success. But still.

The dominant line of thought in country was that our title window was closing. After getting dominated like we did last tournament by Nova Anglicana, we'd have to wait for the next generation of players to come in. This tournament would see a course correction. And it almost did. We were in third for basically the entirety of the group stages, not getting into second until the final days. We had to walk it off in a do or die Game 5 against a scrappy 189 squad. And then, Newmanistan would be the Round of 16 opponent. The obituary was written. Newmanistan would beat us like Nova Anglicana did last year, as broadcasters would be treated to the biggest possible baseball matchup- Cassadaigua v. Newmanistan in the playoffs.

But then, something changed. We had a tight win in Game 1 against them, and then lost 13-3 in Game 2. That's when the narratives came back. WE can't handle the pressure. We can't play against the big boys. All that. And then.. this team caught fire! Back to back dominant pitching performances in Games 3 and 4, holding them to just two runs over the final 18 innings of that series. And as Ramata Kabba mowed through that lineup, Kohnhead was busy sweeping the defending champions. Could it be? We were prying that closing title window back open, against one of baseball's perennially elite squads, Newmanistan.

And then, after an exciting walkoff win in extras in Game 1 against Kohnhead, our offense exploded in Games 2 and 3 to earn the sweep against the team that went 4-2 against us in group play! Same story as game 2. Chase their starter early for the second consecutive game, as their starting pitcher allowed 7 earned runs in 2.1 innings. Leading 7-2 in an elimination game after three innings is usually a recipe for success, and it deflated our opponents, as we earned an 8-3 victory against an excellent Kohnhead team. Brought out the brooms. The semifinals!

A familiar opponent lies in wait, however- the Sherpa Empire. In the knockout stages, since WBC 46, we are 7-7 against the Sherpa Empire- a perfect .500. Of course, they have two series wins and we have one, but we won't talk about that. Ousman Kakay expects another exciting series. "Sherpaland can easily be described as our chief rival in this sport, considering our recent history." Kakay told reporters. "We're both looking to shake up the top of the standings, and these opportunities to make the championship series don't come around that often. I can promise Banijan fans, no stone will go unturned in our quest to win three games against our fierce rival."

So that window, that we once thought was closed, is now open. But we've got to step through it. And the only way to do so is to get past Sherpaland. Will Paladon Park be the place of Banijan dreams, or the site of a massive 'what if'?

[South Newlandia]

This is your (late) formal cutoff for the fifth games we don’t actually need. Anyway, here are the semi-finals.

Semifinals

Scorinated by South Newlandia:

#13 Banija vs #16 The Sherpa Empire
@ Paladon Park (Avanaroch, Paladon), Tikariot


Scorinated by Tikariot:

#7 South Newlandia vs #11 Sarzonia
@ Elephant Stadium (Elephant Valley), South Newlandia


For Sherpaland and Sarzonia, this will also mean switching cutoff times.
Scorination will resume tomorrow at the usual times. Good luck to all remaining teams!
The higher seeded team will be the designated home team in games 1, 3, and 5.

[The Sherpa Empire]

Chongba Lee found a small group of players from the Sherpa national baseball team standing in the hallway at the hotel where they were staying. They were around the doorway of Zhiku Tsongba Sherpa's room, and the door was standing open while the big burly right fielder moved around the room, tossing things around and cussing about something. "Fuuuuuck! Where is it? Damn! I swear I had it yesterday! It was right fucking there! Where the fuck is it? Fuck!" He picked up a pillow and tossed it back. "Where the fuck did it go?"

Lee asked what was going on. "He can't find his passport," Nima Unnikrishnan explained.

"What? But we need to leave in less than an hour!" Lee exclaimed worriedly. "What did he do with it?" The Sherpas had found out that their semifinal series would be played in Avanaroch, Tikariot, and that meant they needed to get to the airport and catch a plane. For a moment, Lee's mind was filled with fears that Zhiku -- one of the team's best power hitters -- had left his passport on a park bench or a table at a random diner and would not be able to enter Tikariot.

Zhiku opened his suitcase and pawed through everything in it to see if he'd accidentally packed the passport among his clothes. "Fuuuuck!" he said again.

"Have you looked in Tandi's room?" Yawei Qu asked, leaning into the doorway to talk to him. "You were hanging out with us last night."

"Why would I leave my passport in Tandi's room?" Zhiku asked.

"Well, if you can't find it in your room... Where else could it be?"

Zhiku brushed past everyone and hurried up the hall to the room that Tandi Ojha and Jayant Zia had been sharing. It took about five seconds from when Ojha opened the door to when Zhiku spotted his red and gold passport sitting on the corner of the nightstand. He returned to his own room feeling very embarrassed and quickly packed up the rest of his personal effects so they could check out of the hotel and catch their plane to Tikariot. Ojha and Zia were also scrambling to get their stuff together, but Lee eventually managed to herd them all out the door and get them on their flight.

"Don't scare me like that," he said to Zhiku as they left the hotel. He was really tempted to collect everyone's passports and hold onto them all until they got home to Sherpaland. The reason he didn't normally do this was because the players sometimes needed their passports to use as ID.

[South Newlandia]

Cutoff for Sherpa and Banija, Games 1 and 2! Who will wield the hammer of glory?

Semifinals

#13 Banija vs #16 The Sherpa Empire
@ Paladon Park (Avanaroch, Paladon), Tikariot

Game 1 
The Sherpa Empire      0 0 2 0 2 1 2 0 0  7
Banija                 1 0 0 0 0 1 0 1 0  3

Game 2
Banija                 0 1 3 0 0 0 3 1 0  8
The Sherpa Empire      0 0 0 4 0 0 0 0 1  5

Series tied 1-1

[Sarzonia]

Sarzonia reserve outfielder Matt Sain rarely sees the pitch for the national baseball team. After comments he made during the team's media availability day prior to getting on a flight to Elephant Valley for the team's World Baseball Classic semifinals series against co-hosts South Newlandia, he might not see the field at all.

Sain ripped WBC organisers' decision to force the Stars to travel to face South Newlandia instead of remaining in Tikariot to face off against archrivals Banija.

"It doesn't make any sense," Sain said. "We and Banija are the second and third highest remaining seeds in the World Baseball Classic. We could be playing them on that basis or we could be playing them for the Tikariot bracket championship. They must have it in for us," he added.

Stars manager Geoff Yancey inhaled slowly when advised of Sain's comments, saying "they don't reflect the views of Sarzonian baseball or anyone else on the team."

"I'm disappointed to hear the comments Sain made in relation to our next opponents," Yancey said. "We have a mindset that we're ready to face anyone anywhere, and I am personally upset by the notion anyone wearing a Sarzonia kit would impugn the integrity of the hosts of this tournament."

Sain doubled down on his criticism, noting that the Stars were given the added logistical chore of booking a flight to Elephant Valley, making hotel reservations, securing a practice facility, and dealing with jet lag instead of a possible cross-country trip to face Banija.

"Not only are we facing the co-hosts, we're playing the highest seeds still alive in this thing," Sain said. He also accused Yancey of throwing him under the bus.

"I thought Yancey had our backs like he did when he was [former Stars manager Khalil Dennis's bench coach]," Sain said. Guess I was wrong. Yancey said Sain would be suspended for Games 1 and 2 of the South Newlandia series.

"There's a process to the way we do things," Yancey said. "That should have been handled internally."

[South Newlandia]

For no particular reason, I’m not writing this in order. The “flashbacks” will be marked cursive, the “current situation” will stay like this.


Kramer was leaving the mound. He’d just blown the Elephants’ lead, surrendering a two-run shot to Gabriel Acosta. The same Gabriel Acosta that had taken a home run off of him two years ago, the same Gabriel Acosta that played on his team, too; a fellow Masmow Dragon. He’d struck him out twice in that game so far, but he’d missed the spot on that Changeup. It was supposed to be just under the box, not right in the middle. Now, it was tied four to four in the seventh as Kramer trotted to his coach.

Super-Llamaland was going to be a tough opponent, everyone knew that going in. In game one, the team had ridden a good performance by Conroy, who allowed just two runs in eight innings; but the hitters had scored enough runs off of Isaac Colón to take game one six to two. That put them into a favourable position with their own fans backing them up in Ratzupalfu, a special ballpark for South Newlandian national teams. The U22-team had famously gotten swept here against the youth team from Falisiand in the group stages three years ago, when South Newlandia and Tikariot hosted the International Baseball Slam. The sweep had caused the team to miss the home playoffs; but now, they were already there, and the stadium proved to be an advantage.

Kramer had watched Abby Conrad end the seventh inning and stayed to watch her get through the eighth as well. The score was still tied at four going into the ninth, when Sansara put Barnaby Butt, the closer, in. He allowed a one-out double to Noah Slater and would have to face Gabriel Acosta next. “Don’t give him your slider”, Kramer thought. The first pitch was a high fastball, taken for ball one. Next pitch, another fastball. Strike one. Acosta didn’t chase Butt’s signature changeup to get ahead in the count. For the next pitch, Fred Burn signalled – Slider. Kramer knew that Butt, also a Masmow Dragon, rarely missed his spot on those, and this one was supposed to be below the zone. Butt missed his spot, and Acosta crushed the ball.

In game two, Ryan Hunter had some trouble, while Kai Söderstrom had gone through the first four innings giving up just one hit. The Elephants were quickly down 0-3, but they started to get to Söderstrom now. In the fifth inning, with two on and two out, Sansara made the rare decision to take Adam King, who’d taken a line drive to the leg earlier in the game, out to let Nicolas Perez pinch-hit. Since his walk-off heroics in the group stage, Perez had been solid pinch-hitting, but hadn’t homered again until now; sending a changeup into the stands to tie the game.

The ball was hit high, and it looked deep; but Acosta had gotten just under it. Zimmerman was able to make the catch near the warning track. Slater tagged up to third, but there were two outs now. Butt retired Miranda Gray to end the inning. There, the South Newlandian batters couldn’t get anything from the Llamanean reliever, sending the game into extra innings. Kramer knew what was riding on this. He’d already managed to at least take a no-decision for the game, but he would only fully get rid of the past if the Elephants would win this game. Not to mention, of course, that this was the Quarterfinals of the World Baseball Classic.

Game two further went downhill for the Tigers when the Elephants took the lead in the sixth, before scoring eight runs in the seventh, practically ending the game right there. A lead of that size also gave them a chance to get Barnaby Butt some rest, and the Tigers’ four late runs didn’t really matter in a 13-7 win for the Elephants. Taking a two-nil lead against anyone was not a guarantee for success in the tournament, especially not in this edition, but it would certainly be a massive advantage. No one really dared dreaming of the Semifinals yet.

The tenth inning went by without any major happenings. Butt was replaced by Gostaf Sjabard for the eleventh, and although he allowed a hit, he managed to get out of the inning, giving the Elephants a chance with the top of the lineup due up against Llamanean reliever Kris Headley. Ventura managed to luck into first base thanks to a blooper into right, and Larsen laid down a good bunt to bring the series-clinching run to second base. Shawn Zimmerman was intentionally walked, before Adam King struck out on three pitches, bring up Daryl Dunlop with two on, two outs. Dunlop worked up to a 3-1 count before fouling a fastball back. The Tigers were a strike away from ending the inning. The leverage index had climbed to almost five. Dunlop fouled off another pitch. The next pitch was a changeup low in the zone, and Dunlop bounced it right down the middle. Huang couldn’t quite reach it, and it rolled into the outfield to Lily Scutaro, one of the best outfielders on the Tigers, as Fabio Ventura rounded third. Scutaro launched a good throw towards home plate, Ventura slid, Armstrong caught the ball, went for the tag and – OUT! It had been a close play, but it looked like the ump was right. Of course, the play was going to get reviewed.

Sansara found himself in an unfamiliar situation in the press conference before game three. Having to comment on the alleged adventures of Tyson Long, who’d reportedly been seen “half-naked”, with “strange, presumably alcoholic beverages”, looking for “Quebecois-style nightclubs" was not exactly a situation he wanted to be in. He tried to avoid questions, stating that “border security clearly had a mishap there”, and that he would otherwise refrain from commenting. “Also, for the record – no, there are no Quebecois-style nightclubs in Ratzupalfu, or anywhere in South Newlandia, and we are strongly against any type of drugs here. Any of my players caught with any will be kicked out of the team, and that includes everything illegal here.” While a South Newlandian reliever quickly picked up a suspicious box a player had dropped, Sansara ended the press conference. He had thought about using this stage to also make his big announcement, but decided to not disturb his players with that.

It had taken nearly three minutes already. Kramer, and everyone else in the stadium, had watched the play on a big monitor multiple times now. It looked as if Ventura might’ve gotten under the tag. At least the tag wasn’t clearly visible. The umpires came back, and with them came the signal. Ventura had been save. The Elephants were moving on to the semifinals. Kramer run up onto the field to celebrate. He finally slayed his demon he’d been working on for two years. He’d figured it out.

[Tikariot]

Semifinals

#11 Sarzonia vs #7 South Newlandia
Elephant Stadium (Elephant Valley), South Newlandia

Game 1
Sarzonia               0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0  1
South Newlandia        0 1 2 0 0 2 0 1 X  6

Game 2
South Newlandia        0 0 0 0 0 0 0 2 0  2
Sarzonia               0 2 0 0 1 0 0 1 X  4

Series tied at 1-1

[The Sherpa Empire]

After 3 weeks in South Newlandia, it felt a little strange to be playing in a stadium as large as Paladon Park -- but the Sherpas weren't complaining. They were discussing where they wanted to go for drinks after the game, now that they could drink in public without offending anyone. Zhiku Tsongba Sherpa and Kami Akunjee had a brief debate about whether Matt Sain really thought the South Newlandians were trying to rig the tournament in their favor, or if he was just mad that he couldn't buy a beer. "He's definitely mad that he can't buy a beer," Akunjee said.

Chongba Lee nudged the conversation back to how they were going to beat the Banijans. Like the other playoff series, they were starting from the top of their rotation with Weiyun Gan pitching the first game of the series.

The first game went fine, mostly because of a steady onslaught from the Sherpa bats. Gan allowed a hit here or there, but not enough to be a problem when he was getting solid run support. He gave up 2 runs in 7 innings, and the Sherpas cruised to a comfortable 7-3 victory.

Game 2 didn't go so well. Akunjee was having a bad day. It wasn't clear whether this had anything to do with how much Tikariotian booze he'd drunk the night before, or if he was just having a bad day. Akunjee said he hadn't drank that much and he didn't know why he was having trouble with the placement of his pitches -- but not everyone believed him. After 3 innings and 4 runs, Akunjee was out of the game and Tsering Tenzing Chung got called in to stop the bleeding.

A grand slam by Tianling Qiao tied the game at 4 runs apiece, but it didn't last. The bullpen ran out of steam in the 7th inning and the Sherpas wound up losing 8-5.

That evening, between games 2 and 3, Chongba Lee met with Weiyun Gan and Daki Chuan to discuss their plans for the rest of the series. "Daki, I want you to be ready to pitch out of the bullpen tomorrow if we have another game like today," Lee explained. "I hope it won't come to that, but I want you to be ready in case it does. You never know when Zhuang is going to find a snail in the grass and completely forget why he's there."

Chuan laughed. Luochong Zhuang was her husband, and it was true that he got easily distracted by snails, butterflies, the like. He usually didn't let it interfere with his pitching, but he was notorious for derailing conversations in the clubhouse or talking everyone's ear off on travel days.

"Plan A is to keep you in the rotation and you'll start game 5 if we play all 5 games," Lee went on. "But if we have another game like today, plan B is to use you out of the bullpen, and then Gan would start game 5."

[Sarzonia]

Jeff Parrish wasn't particularly interested in the talk of distractions created by the discussions of Matt Sain's comments and his suspension as a result of them.

He was too busy talking about giving up five runs in six innings. He was too busy talking about not getting a good grip on his curveball or the Tikariot home plate umpire squeezing the plate so he got none of the calls on his change up being on the low outside corner of the plate. He asserted that not getting those pitches forced him to use his fastball more and it gave South Newlandian hitters the ability to time his fastball and tag it for 11 hits and two homers, leading to Sarzonia's 6-1 defeat in Game 1 of the best of five series against the host nation.

"I couldn't get my curveball to snap," Parrish said. "And that umpire kept calling balls on a change up where I usually get strikes. That makes anyone's fastball more hittable."

He declined to comment on the row surrounding Sain's comments and his subsequent suspension.

"That's not my department," he said. "I just pitch whenever [Sarzonia manager Geoff Yancey] tells me."

Parrish also allowed four walks, an uncharacteristically high number for a pitcher who usually got questions if he had two walks in a game. More to the point, however, Parrish was concerned about the fact that the Stars' seven-match winning streak was now history, and it put more pressure on Mark Conroy in Game 2 to prevent the Stars from going down two games to none with the need to run the table in a hostile ballpark.

That's where Conroy silenced the chatter. He pitched seven shutout innings, allowing two hits and no walks and struck out nine before turning matters over to set up man Scott Lassiter. Lassiter loaded the bases with two walks and a hit batsman before Yancey quickly yanked him in favour of closer Tyrell Douglass. Douglass hadn't tried to get a six-out save at all during the qualifying campaign and only had one four-out save before tonight, but Yancey knew he had to act fast.

"It's the semifinals," he said. "We can't afford to give up a victory when we have it in our grasp." A two-run throwing error by third baseman Jose Garcia cut the Sarzonia lead to 4-2, but Douglass ended up striking out the side right after that, and then did so again in the ninth to give the Stars the victory and even the series at one victory apiece.

Douglass said he would pitch in Game 3 if called upon.

"I know I normally don't throw that many pitches normally [Douglass threw 49 in Game 2], but this is the knockouts," he said. "C'mon, this is for a chance to go to the final for the first time since WBC 18. Ain't no way I'm going to miss a chance to close out a game if I have one."

Sain will be back, but will likely not be in the starting lineup in Game 3. Yancey joked that Sain might be sent to the bullpen if the Stars are trailing by 10 runs or more.

"It would serve him right," he said. Turning serious, Yancey said, "We addressed his comments. Let's just say we agreed to disagree on a lot of things. If we need him in the lineup in either Game 3 or Game 4, he'll be in there.

For his part, Sain was unrepentant about his comments, and especially about going to the media with his concerns about event organisers moving the Stars to South Newlandia for the semifinals.

"You can't tell me that wasn't deliberate," Sain said. "No suspension is going to change my mind."

Right now, though, Sarzonia has a much more important concern: Getting through Games 3 and 4. Jamie Pearson will start for Yancey's ballclub in Game 3. The identity of the Game 4 starter will depend on whether Sarzonia prevails in the third game. Yancey said if the Stars win, Brian Lynch will toe the rubber in Game 4 and Parrish would get a Game 5 nod if needed. However, if the Stars lose in Game 3, Parrish will start Game 4 and Conroy would pitch a Game 5 if necessary.

One thing that works in Sarzonia's favour is the fact that South Newlandia also employ the designated hitter, which means Stars DH Luke Brinkley can bat in his normal position and allow the Stars defence to remain with its best defensive lineup, including Jodie Schein in left field and Cody Frazier at first base. Yancey said the Stars would have had to use Frazier in left field and Brinkley at first base if the hosts required pitchers to hit.

"It's not our best defensive team by any stretch," he said. "We were able to get through it in one match against Zwangzug, but it will be a challenge moving forward."

[Banija]

With the bullpen taxed and the series turning into a virtual Best of 3, all eyes on Banija's pitching staff to make the difference in the pivotal Game 3


Players at a fan event before Game 2 in Tikariot

AVANAROCH, PALADON, TIKARIOT- With these two rivals meeting for the fourth time in the knockout stages in the last six World Baseball Classics, it was no surprise that there was nothing to choose between the two teams after two games. Sherpaland took Game 1, and we roared back to take Game 2. Both games had the same fundamental elements for our team. Our starters knocked out early, the bats waking up on both sides, and our bullpen having to push through extended outings. The middle of our bullpen held up, mostly, so far in these opening two games. But that's the weak link of our pitching staff- we need our starters to go deeper.

The off-day will be nice for the bullpen to rest up. But all that wear and tear, even over the course of off-days, can take a toll on a pitching staff. And with the best of 5 turning into a best of 3, the margin for error for both sides is shrinking. Especially when you're playing for a chance to play in the WBC Championship series. The leash for our pitchers will naturally be shorter. We'll run through our bullpen more. Our back end of the bullpen, especially Kujabi and Kinte, will be asked to shoulder a heavier load than they are used to playing. There's no half-measures in this sport- none of the four managers left will leave any stone unturned.

We asked Ousman Kakay how he will approach Game 3, with this in mind. "Well, we've got a veteran pitcher on the mound in Ensa Suso. What makes this series so great is that both teams are recent champions- plenty of players with championship experience on both sides. So this moment is not too big for anybody here, even if the stakes are enormous. But it's the same thing that's always been true for us. It starts with our starting pitching. If our starter can log 6 or 7 innings, and get the ball to Kujabi directly, we'll be in a good place. That didn't happen in Games 1 or 2- and we lost one, but won the other. Suso has to set the tone for us."

When we asked Suso how he will approach this game, he didn't give away much. "This is a huge rivalry for us. Priority opponent, on the biggest of stage- the WBC Semifinals." He said at the press conference. "I know what the ol' ball coach expects of me. I'm gonna have to hit, too. But I've spent the last two days studying. My arm's fresh, I haven't pitched in an actual game in a week, just a simulated bullpen session. So my arm's fresh and ready to go. Coach wants me to go out and throw 100? 110? Hell, 120? I got it." When we asked Ousman Kakay if Suso would throw 120 pitches, he simply laughed.

Meanwhile, the bats are hot, having scored 8 runs against Sherpaland in Game 2. We spoke to the hitting coach, Theodosia Osano. "We've been taking excellent at-bats in this series so far. Of course, they've got an off-day too, I expect their pitchers to adjust. But we've got to keep the fundamentals down. Don't chase. Patient at-bats. Being aggressive on the basepaths. Not always going for the home run swing and putting pressure on their defense, making sure that we put the ball in play. The lights are only getting brighter, and the noise getting louder, and the tendency to try and go for hero ball at the plate will increase. It is harder to stay disciplined at the plate the deeper you get into a series. So we're hammering it home- don't put too much pressure on yourself. Get to the plate and relax. Don't panic. Stay disciplined. That mental game is so important at these late stages, and it's crucial we create an edge for ourselves there."

Ensa Suso is the pitcher for game 3, which will happen without a DH. Ramata Kabba will pitch Game 4, although if we lose Game 3, Ousman Kakay told us to expect Duta Condé to 'be on standby' for Game 4 if it is an elimination game for our squad. Will the next two games give us any separation between Banija and the Sherpa Empire?

[South Newlandia]

Cutoff for Sherpa and Banija, Games 3 and 4! A lot if riding on this day. Only one team will make the final, and one team will be killed off.

Semifinals

#13 Banija vs #16 The Sherpa Empire
@ Paladon Park (Avanaroch, Paladon), Tikariot

Game 3 
The Sherpa Empire      0 1 0 1 0 0 0 0 1  3
Banija                 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 2 1  4

Game 4
Banija                 0 0 0 0 0 4 3 1 0  8
The Sherpa Empire      1 0 0 0 1 0 1 3 0  6

Banija wins the series 3-1

There will be another game-less cutoff tomorrow (y'all know the drill by now) with the matchups.

[Tikariot]

Semifinals

#11 Sarzonia vs #7 South Newlandia
Elephant Stadium (Elephant Valley), South Newlandia

Game 3
Sarzonia               0 0 0 0 2 0 0 1 1  4
South Newlandia        0 0 0 0 0 0 5 0 X  5

Game 4
South Newlandia        2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0  2
Sarzonia               1 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 1  3

Series tied at 2-2

[Banija]

Banija knocks out The Sherpa Empire as they advance to their second ever WBC Championship Series


Players celebrate the final out of their semifinal series with the Sherpa Empire

AVANAROCH, PALADON, TIKARIOT- What a moment. As we've said many times over throughout the course of the tournament, we did not expect to be here. But here we are. Locked deep in a series with a classic rival, and the Banijan national team dug deep two days in a row, one day with late game heroics, and the second a chaotic, offensively filled affair, to put away their rivals and get to the Championship Series. We will compete for our second ever World Baseball Classic title in a few days time. We won't know our opponent until Sarzonia and South Newlandia play their pivotal Game 5 in Elephant Valley tonight.

Let's get right to it, shall we? Game 3- Ensa Suso on the mound. Ousman Kakay talked about the importance of making sure that our starters went deep. And well.... We can't exactly say that he got the pitching performance he wanted. Ensa Suso's control was all over the place for the entire day. The 33 year old, normally a big game pitcher who's got ice in his veins, could not pin point the strike zone. He did all he could to ensure that we didn't have more damage. Sherpaland loaded the bases in both the second and the fourth innings, btu he only allowed one run in each of them. When he allowed runners on first and second base with one out in the fifth inning, Kakay had no choice but to pull him. Down 2-0 in the pivotal Game 3, especially since at that point our bats weren't doing anything. Four and a third, 7 hits, 2 walks, 4 strikeouts, 101 pitches. And in line for the L. Not a great outing for Ensa Suso.

And obviously far too early to go to the back end of the pen. So the front end of the pen it was- with Alifa Kakay taking the mound. He got two popups to end the inning. In the bottom half of the inning, Banija's bats finally woke up. Luochong Zhuang was dominating on the mound. Had just allowed 3 baserunners all game, two walks and a single, and no runners in scoring position. Chiki Uche led off the bottom of the fifth with a single. Xaaf Geele, after an 11 pitch at-bat, walked. Runners on first and second, nobody out. Finally getting to Zhuang? Zhaung was able to force a 4-6-3 double play from Bailo Suso, but that moved Uche up to third base with two outs. Obasey Mazzi slapped an opposite field single out to right field, and Uche walked in standing up. 2-1 Sherpaland.

Not much to write about until the top of the 8th. Alifa Kakay pitched the 6th inning as well, before handing the ball off to Yoro Coulibaly to pitch the seventh inning. Coulibaly came on board in the top of the 8th, as well with Sherpaland up 2-1. But it did not go well. Runners on second and third with two out. Coulibaly got the pull for Bouba Kujabi. Unnikrishnan up at the plate, the chance to make it 4-1 with a single. But Kujabi caught him looking on a 2-2 breaking ball that painted the outside corner of the strike zone.

But it did not work. Kujabi caught Johar looking on a 2-2 breaking ball to get out of the inning. With Sherpa having to go to the pen, the Banijan order came alive. Obasey Mazzi led off the inning with a base hit. And then, he flew and stole second base. Tying run at second, nobody out. A deep flyout by Momodou Joof allowed Mazzi to tag up to third base. One out. Cyper Kandeh struck out. Two outs. And then the veteran, Yakuba Kah, at the plate. He would launch a moonshot, the designated hitter with a moonshot over the right field wall. Sherpa's 2-1 lead was turned upside down, as we took our first lead of the game, leading 3-2.

Malik Solely struck out on three pitches, but nobody was paying attention. Could Sama Kinte make the save? The answer was no. He struck out the first two hitters. But Yawei Qu hitting #3, started the two out rally. He laced a double down the left field line to give the Sherpa Empire new life. The cleanup hitter, Tianling Qiao, proceeded to lace a double down the right field line to allow Qu to score the tying run. The throw from the outfield went into second. So with blown saves recorded on both ends, the bottom of the 9th was going to be interesting. Extras were surely on their way.

But Jung Jassey loves to take big rips. And after getting to a 3-1 count, he saw a hanging breaking ball. And he crushed it. Tore the laces off of the baseball. A leadoff, walkoff home run to spark off crazy celebrations, and give the squad a 2-1 series lead in exciting fashion.

Banija's bats didn't get going until late. Ramata Kabba went 6 innings and allowed 2 earned runs, getting the win. Malik Solely, our new biggest star, launched a sixth inning grand slam that turned a 2-0 deficit into a 4-2 lead. And in the 7th, we loaded the base again, and it was a bases clearing triple from Momodou Joof that would give us a 7-2 lead in this elimination game. But Sherpaland didn't let the pressure of the occasion get to them. They scored in the bottom of the 7th to make it 7-3, and although we scored a run in the top of the 8th, Sherpaland hit a 3 run bomb in the bottom of the 8th to make it 8-6. But after that 1 out bomb, Ousman Kakay wasn't messing around- Kujabi came off, and Sama Kinte came on in the 8th, despite his blown save on the previous night. He struck out the last two batters in the 8th inning, and after allowing a leadoff double in the bottom of the 9th, he struck out the side to earn the 5 out save and put Banija into the WBC Championship Series.

The celebrations were ecstatic. As Kinte got the last out, the bench rushed the field and mobbed the mound, celebrating Kinte and celebrating their accomplishment. Ousman Kakay waved to the Banijan half of the crowd. The Banijan fans started chanting '16', in reference to the number of knockout stage wins a team would have to win to win the 51st World Baseball Classic. His message in postgame was clear. This was an 'incredible' accomplishment by the squad, but there was still a ton of work to do. He said the team would spend their next three days resting up, and they would be fresh for the Championship Series. He urged players to drink in the moment. "This is not a moment that always comes around." He said. "Success in this sport is not promised. Let's make sure to leave no regrets on the field."

[South Newlandia]

This is your (late) formal cutoff for the fifth game we don’t actually need. Anyway, here's the matchups.

3rd-place playoff

#7 South Newlandia/#11 Sarzonia vs #16 The Sherpa Empire
@ Dolphin Stadium (Newport), South Newlandia


WBC51 Championship

#7 South Newlandia/#11 Sarzonia vs #13 Banija
@ Oceanview Park (Port Rhovanyon, Rhovannyr), Tikariot


The Championship will be scorinated by Tikariot. If Sarzonia plays in the 3PPO, it will be scorinated by South Newlandia; if South Newlandia plays in the 3PPO, it will be scorinated by Tikariot.
Scorination will resume after an off-day at the usual times. Good luck to all remaining teams!
The higher seeded team will be the designated home team in games 1, 3, 5 and 7.

[Sarzonia]

Jeff Parrish is the pitcher Sarzonian national baseball team manager Geoff Yancey turns to when the team faces a pressure situation.

The team was facing a two games to one series deficit for the first time in the current World Baseball Classic tournament after the Stars bullpen ran out of gas in Game 3 to the tune of a 5-4 defeat. That meant Parrish would have to start Game 4 on short rest.

He coughed up a two-run double to first baseman Adam King, but settled down from there, tossing a complete game with five hits, one walk and six strikeouts.

However, it was erstwhile persona non grata Matt Sain who was the big hero as he hit a walk-off home run in the bottom of the ninth inning to give the Stars a 3-2 victory and even the best of five series against host nation South Newlandia at two games apiece.

We'll play the call from play-by-play announcer Brett Fischer:

"This'll be Matt Sain's first appearance in the knockout rounds. He pinch ran for Luke Brinkley in the bottom of the seventh so now he's up in the cleanup spot in the batting order. Bryant is into his motion, and here's the pitch, swing and a drive to deep left field, it's hooking ... IT'S GONE! IT'S GONE! IT'S GONE! IT'S GONE! MATT SAIN HAS WALKED THIS ONE OFF! STARS WIN! STARS WIN! STARS WIN! AND WE'LL SEE YOU IN GAME FIVE!"

The South Newlandian fans sat in stunned silence as Cain rounded the bases and saw him launch himself high in the air after touching home plate. The navy-clad Stars supporters cheered wildly, their dreams of returning to the final against archrivals Banija still very much alive.

Yancey said, "I just played a hunch" when asked why he left Sain in to face the South Newlandian set-up man. He said No. 2 starter Mark Conroy will start the deciding fifth game, but added "everybody will be available" out of the bullpen.

Even Parrish?

"If we need him for an inning or so, he'll be ready," Yancey said above the din of the clubhouse celebration.

Stars pitcher Jamie Pearson threw six scoreless frames in Game 3 before reliever Carnie Weston gave up a tying home run to King. Dima Ostrelov gave up two more runs before Scott Lassiter coughed up one more run.

Yancey said Brian Lynch would start Game 1 against either Banija or Sherpaland with Pearson likely to pitch Game 2. Parrish and Conroy would start Games 3 and 4, respectively.

[Tikariot]

Semifinals

#11 Sarzonia vs #7 South Newlandia
Elephant Stadium (Elephant Valley), South Newlandia

Game 5
Sarzonia               0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0  1
South Newlandia        1 0 1 0 2 0 0 1 X  5

South Newlandia wins series 3-2

Note: Due to all RPs in (or declared that no RP would be made), the cutoff was advance to give our European side a chance to see the result still today.

[Banija]

Many legacies on the line as Banija chases their second world title in North Rushmore


Fans out in full force during Banija's Game 4 against Sherpaland in the Semifinals

PORT RHOVANYON, RHOVANNYR, TIKARIOT- Group 8 continues to show its strength at the tournament with the group's top two finishers, South Newlandia and Banija, set to meet for a Best of 7 at Oceanview Park in the Tikariot capitol city. Hell, it may be one of the strongest groups we've ever seen in this sport. Kohnhead qualified, won two playoff series before being defeated by another Group 8 team(us). While us and South Newlandia have both won four playoff series to get to this moment, the championship series.

This is where legacies are made. The Championship Series. All eyes on you. The brightest lights. The biggest stage. What Banijans have the most at stake in this series, in terms of their individual legacy?

Manager Ousman Kakay

Ousman Kakay's legacy is mostly secure. He grabbed a team that was essentially average when he took over in WBC 46, and in his six tournaments as the manager, the team has reached at least the quarterfinals of the World Baseball Classic every single time. Before him? Only once. He immediately and clearly elevated this team's level of play from his arrival, and he's got a ring to go along with it. He will forever be the first Banijan national team coach to win a world title in one of the country's "Big 5" sports(Soccer/Gridiron/Basketball/Baseball/Lacrosse). That can't be taken away from him.

He's safely the greatest baseball coach in Banijan history, although there isn't exactly a ton of competition there. What's he going for? The greatest Banijan coach in history, full stop. Now, it's an incredibly difficult comparison to compare coaches across sports. But look at it in terms of coaches who are actually Banijan themselves? Isaiah Lavaga, who coaches the basketball team, has like 40 consecutive wins in all competitions, or something close to that. And in terms of coaches in general who have coached in Banija. Brian Emerson. Marcus Waters. Both in soccer. The aforementioned Lavaga. As well as Ivanovich at Kitara AA, who has won the Champions League.

He refuses to talk about his legacy, saying that's something he'll have plenty of time to think about when he retires. But a second championship on his resume? And doing all that while losing his trusted bench coach, Isaac Oladipo, to Super Llamaland? It would be mighty impressive.

Yakuba Kah

The left-handed power hitter is obviously in his last series. He's got a title. He's hit so many home runs in his time at the national team, in this very tournament. And the amount of clutch hits. But if he can do some more clutch hitting here? He might go down as Banija's all-time big game performer. Imagine him having a walkoff in the championship series. He'd have to go down as one of the most clutch hitters ever, right? Maybe even beyond Banija, although we don't have the numbers to really talk about that.

Malik Solely

The next star. He's got all the things you look for in somebody you want to be the face of your team. He's charismatic. He's high-energy. He plays his ass off every single play. And he's already had some big-time hits in big moments in this tournament. The Game 5, walkoff, three run bomb in the first round of the playoffs against The 189, to even give us a chance to advance. He's young, but he's without a title.

The World Baseball Classic is a notoriously tough sport to win a title in. Title windows do not stay open for that long. And even if yours is open- you're always going to have to go through one of Nova Anglicana, Newmanistan, or Cassadaigua. All three top-10 baseball nations of all-time. Super Llamaland, under the guidance of Isaac Oladipo, is back among the tiers of the elite. All four have deeper piles of baseball talent than Banija. So there are no guarantees he'll ever get back to this series.

There you have it. A lot of people's legacies will be forever shaped by what happens over the course of the next 9 days. Hopefully, for many of these Banijans, Oceanview Park will be the site of their greatest triumph, as opposed to their most regretted missed opportunity.

As always, go Banija!