World Baseball Classic 56 Everything Thread

[Drawkland]

Oh, dammit. You were talking to your buddy Josh at work, shooting the shit about how Dustin Beck is washed or something. Trying to come up with a killer analogy, you compare Beck to Base Corps pitcher Darian Rodriguez. He's a legend who is clearly past his prime and needs to retire before he falls off the cliff, preferably ASAP. Now, you don't give two shits about the WBC or baseball in general, just whatever big moments or players penetrate the wider sports fandom nucleus. This, however, was a fatal error. By mentioning Rodriguez's name, you've caught the attention of that Weird Guy at work. The one who just keeps talking, with no regard to social cues or your comfort level (which falls by the second). And now he's on a tear about the Base Corps!

Weird Dude at Work WBC Recap, Series 1 and 2

"Darian Rodriguez, past his prime? Ha! He pitched six innings of 1-run ball last week. He's just as good as ever!"

Your eyes shift to Josh, who is no help. Having taken his lunch a half hour earlier than you, it was late enough that he has to get back to doing real work. He quickly wipes his mouth with a napkin and immediately bails with a mumbled goodbye. Weird Guy immediately slides into Josh's seat with a wide-eyed grin, adjusting his glasses. You take a quick peek back at your lunch. An apple with two bites already taken out, half a sandwich, and you just opened your bag of chips too. It's all a mess, and there's no way you can pack all that up without looking suspicious. Oh well. One-run ball, eh?

"Oh yeah man! That was game two of the group stage. He's still got it!"

Group stage of what? Wait, the WBC was on already? Wasn't that supposed to start next week or something?

"It started last week. Actually this particular game was exactly a week ago. Rodriguez got pulled right after he picked up the quality start following the sixth, and of course Jack West, or as I like to call him, HACK West, hahah! Um, he gave up a run in the seventh inning, actually a leadoff home run on his first pitch. After that the game was tied, so he stayed in for the eighth and got another three outs. Tied at two, the bullpen's in, bottom of the lineup up to bat in the ninth? Of course the Base Corps going to blow it right? WRONG! Of course Chan Ford strikes out to start the inning, but then Dan Peters and Aaron Frost blooped back-to-back singles to put runners on with one out. What does Abram Kavana? Hit an opposite-field jack to blow open the lead! Then Franklin Bell comes in and of course he puts two men in scoring position to start the inning, but gets away with only allowing a sac fly and earning the save! It sucks that Rodriguez didn't get the win after such a solid performance, but at least the team won in the end."

That was actually a somewhat interesting story, despite the cringe-inducing delivery. Weird that you didn't hear about that on the news last week. Maybe the sports media outlets are tired of giving coverage to such a dogshit team that doesn't go anywhere near a playoff run? Whatever the reason, maybe Weird Guy's desire to spout baseball recaps has been sated.

"And if you thought Rodriguez's performance in game two was cool, you should've watched opening day of the WBC. I guess you didn't catch that game since you said you weren't aware the tournament had even started. That's a shame, you really missed one hell of a game! Leo Roy was on the bump, because of course you want the ace workhorse to start your season right. And that's exactly what he did! He's known for having endurance and a solid arm to complement it. Would you be surprised if I told you he pitched a complete game? Nine innings, only one run allowed, and that was from a double that got cashed in on a sac fly. Of course the offense started slow going against the ace of StrayaRoos of all teams, but they tied it in the sixth with a couple consecutive base hits. Then with two outs in the ninth, BAM! Ford clocks one over the right field fence."

My God, he's still going at it. You take another look at your lunch. In an effort to appear vaguely interested to what Weird Guy is saying you've managed to completely forget that fact that you're eating lunch. No progress has been made. No closer to freedom, and by the tone of his voice you know that he's not stopping anytime soon. You begin to devour the rest of your sandwich, praying you can finish it as soon as possible without choking to death.

"After those first two games I was afraid our lineup was never going to wake up. The Kavana bros have been hitting great, but haven't gotten enough support from the rest of the lineup to score many runs. I think the newer pieces of the lineup aren't gelling well, personally. Well, that's what I was telling myself at the time, but game three changed my mind entirely! We got the sweep against StrayaRoos by a score of NINE to two! Nine runs! And four of them were homers. My favorite was this one in the sixth inning. Wait no! It was the fifth inning. Yeah. The fifth. Cam Dalton, you know him? This is his first WBC, and he demolished this ball for a two-run homer. Absolute MISSILE over the fence. And this was his first WBC homer, so he absolutely pimps the shot. I mean you should've seen the batflip! Hold on, I think I can find a video of it."

You've got to be fucking kidding. No, he's actually pulling out his phone. He's tapping around, maybe this could be the pause to interject and excuse yourself aaaaand he already pulled up the video. Does he have batflip clips on speed dial? Wow, that's incredible, it's .... exactly like the other 12 bat flips you've consciously watched in your life. You are now shoveling a dozen chips in your mouth per second in an attempt to finish quicker.

"Yeah, isn't that badass as heck? Oh dude, let me find that awesome defensive play by Lane Kavana in game two of the series against Tikariot. Check it out, it was this diving catch in the third inning! Like, look at how much ground he has to cover, and then the dive? That was huge too, because the bases were loaded! Classic Syd Masterson ... or should I say, MID DISASTERson, heh, he had this blowup inning where he gave up four runs, and if not for this snag probably even more. That game was crazy too! While I'm here let me look for the replays of the ninth inning. Basically the whole lineup was struggling against this Beuregard guy from Tikariot, plus he's a stamina guy so he was pitching deep into the game. But after that third pass through the lineup they got him figured out. We finally got the game close in the eighth inning to make it 5-4, but then they got yet another run in the top of the ninth to make it 6-4. But check it out, this lineup didn't quit! We were lucky to have Lane come up first, batting righty against the closer Canterbury, gets a first pitch fastball and just laces it down the line. Taylor Smart is boom-or-bust but the early pressure on Canterbury drew a walk. Yeah, now here's Franky Jones, and you know he's lethal against lefties ... POP! Just clobbers it to the power alley. Immediately ties the game at six, and Mark Fields gets the walkoff sac to win the game. I wish I could've been there, the stadium is absolutely rocking."

Weird Guy really felt the need to not only show you an entire inning's highlight video, with full audio playing through a tinny phone speaker, but give play by play the entire time. Wait, doesn't this guy work in engineering? Goddammit, he makes more money than you. Why is life so unfair? Why does it take so many goddamn bites to finish eating an apple?

"That was basically the highlight of the Tikariot series. Our pitching did well, even the bullpen did their job besides that game two, and the bats finally came alive! Really, ever since that three-run ninth inning against StrayaRoos, the lineup has been hitting well. We've scored six or more runs every game since then! The new pieces are starting to hit their stride, figuratively speaking. Especially Frost, I like him in the leadoff spot, though it's a little disappointing to not see Abram Kavana in that spot hitting leadoff homers. Frost's got that warning track power babyyyy!"

Oh yeah, like this guy could do any better. Probably can't even hit it out of a major league infield, much less the warning track. Then again, neither can you. Maybe you should join that softball team Josh was talking about. You need to get back in shape. Well really, you need to escape by whatever means necessary. Thankfully, you've just scarfed down the rest of your food and have only a couple sips of juice left. The escape plan is in order. Time to get "back to work," or more accurately, "anywhere that isn't here."

"Okay dude, it was nice talking! You should totally check out some WBC games this season, I think this Base Corps team is going to do something special this year. For real!"

Alright, that decides it. This man is certifiably insane.

[Quebec and Shingoryeo]

Primary reference material:Memoires d'Athletes - Do Or Die, the 2038 story of Quebecois HS Baseball's Greatest Match
Other reference materials: RPs from WBC 53 (Theo and Myeong-Shin's story with Haley's song, a Grim Reapers' anthem), TWGS Season Two 'Auld Lang Syne' (involves the story of the narrator)

Part 1

---

Preseason visit @ Midtown Kingston, Mahan

'Oh, hello! Thanks for coming today. Sorry if it's a bit quiet at home today - wife's at home, and the kids are at school, so it will be just me here today. At the house that built me.'

A tall man in his thirties opens the door, dressed in a maroon and black cardigan and light-coloured trousers. With his comfortable, colourful clothes marked down to the basic plaid pattern, there was no doubt the homeowner has certainly known about the arrangement as he welcomes the television into his Midtown Kingston house. This is Heo Myeong-Shin, the captain of the Kingston Tigers and previously the Quebecois national baseball team.

'I moved to Kingston area from Cornwall twenty-five years ago - dad got a job at the UofK and mum set up a legal clinic in Lansdowne Branch just west of the city,' Myeong-Shin said, as the camera continues to enter along the hallway, and walking past old baseball and volleyball posters posted by him and his wife, Kingston Stars' volleyball coach Naomi Goldbloom, before entering the living ro. 'Maternal grandparents lived in 'Sauga and me and my sister came to stay with them a lot. Very busy time in their lives.

'Then we moved here to Midtown when I was in grade eight, the summer before attending Erskine Collegiate.'

It is a nice house - recently refurbished, with the brick and stone exterior well cared for, and the walls recently repainted. Winter sunlight deflects through the glass windows on the wall before hitting the marble flooring of the hallway as the television crew follows him to the living room. The living room, with a built-in bar and a gas fireplace, is where we stop as Myeong-Shin sits on the lounge chair. It is apparent by the looks of the house that it has likely taken years to be refurbished and rebuilt, probably well past the affordability of a middle-class Quebecois family. Perhaps the house wasn't exactly as gleaming or filled with antique furniture when the Heos had first moved in, as it does right now.

'To this day it's hard to believe that I'm back in this house,' says Myeong-Shin, whose brown hair is cut short and beard trimmed to very minimum. 'I've lived here during high school days - me and my sister used to do schoolwork here and mum and dad would test us on them - and then it was empty. Mum passed away, dad got a job in Joongyeong, and both of us went to college. Eventually when we came back, both of us moved Downtown because we were on our twenties, so the house was empty for a decade.'

The years of vacancy of this four-bedroom Tudor home, even with all the refurbishments done since the Heos' return to the Midtown, is no doubt apparent, with some older baseball posters of Kingston Tigers, a couple of older sporting trophies from the siblings' younger days, and a Dagan series and two Quebec Series trophies that the thirty-seven year old brings and places it right on top of his coffee table.

Meet Heo Myeong-Shin. The baseball and gridiron legend. Often remembered in Erskine Collegiate for his tornado-like pitching motion, and in Univ. du Saguenay for his otherworldly, Hector Kweon-winning linebacker (note: Quebecois equivalent of Heisman Trophy -e.d.-). Nowadays known as the two-time Quebec Series champion, Dagan Series MVP, and of course, the face of the Grim Reapers' '54th Magic' squad to their third place run just two WBCs ago in Zwangzug. Most popular sportsman in Quebec. An icon of early-Taewha era. Soon-to-be fourth number retired by the Kingston Tigers organisation that have only given the honour to all-timers.

With this in mind, one of the first questions asked is why he decided to come back two years ago.

'Fans are one half of my equation,' says Myeong-Shin, without blinking his eyes. 'Sure, I didn't want to not keep my promise with the fans that I will return to Kingston one day, to finish out my journey as a Tiger. Everybody knew that I wasn't born a Tigers fan - my father was a Lions fan and mum Blue Jays - but I did grow up watching the Cornwall Tigers on the Reserves (shortened term for QBO Reserves League) and have been a lifelong fan. So to close the chapter, at least with the fans was important.'

'But, Myeong-Shin, you have also said that the biggest part of it was, of course, your family. As you know, you have a lovely family here - your wife's a professional volleyball coach who is also with the national team during the offseason, and you have two lovely children. Your sister, Myeong-Yoon, and brother-in-law Rico (Sierra, a Krytenian pop star), are now the owners of Perce Town. Did the family play a major factor in deciding to return, now that we look back, two years removed?' the cameraman asks.

'That's the other half of the equation,' was all that Myeong-Shin said, as he looks at the Dagan Series trophy won with the Concord Heights Royals. 'My children were eleven and nine at the time and my wife and I always made it clear that we wanted to raise our children back home, in Kingston, and for me to start preparing a new chapter.'

We now cut to the scenes of Kingston's skylines. Located right in middle of the Mahan province that borders three of the five Golden Lakes, one could see in the fast-rolling montages with how city of Kingston has developed from a relatively quiet, redbrick provincial capital to a multicultural city full of skyscrapers. In the embracement of a relative lack of citizen identity, best defined in the ethno-mosaic that had once defined Quebecois immigration policies decades ago, Kingston's relative distance away from the nation's two defining metropolises Songak and Joongyeong have come to define the city as one where both the unpredictability and the order, and also the provinciality and the open-ness coexists.

Lacking a clear cultural identity of its own, at least compared to cities of its comparable statured, the city instead has channelled its energy and identity into its sporting teams. Whether the basketball Raptors, hockey Knights, football Reds (Kingston FC's nicknames), gridiron Argonauts or the Tigers, the atmosphere of the fans is a given, with the seats routinely selling out and the city holding championship parade in front of the Town Hall every other year or so.

Myeong-Shin has already played a combined seven years in two stints with the team, including the last couple, and his status as the club legend is now unparalleled in the modern-era. A charming, soft-spoken and quiet leader who leads by example, Heo has a particular reputation as a silent leader of his teams, and perhaps keeps himself true to his own image by staying out of the public during the offseason, preferring to spend time with his family.

'Since the beginning of the team history, and the eighties dynasty,' Myeong-Shin points out, 'there is no other team's any more like a family than the Kingston Tigers.' And perhaps that holds even more true to the 37-year-old, as the living example of Quebecois baseball continues to talk to the interviewer about his recollections as a rookie out of Saguenay for the Tigers.

'For many decades going back to our earliest days, the Tigers were the poorest guys on the town. Never had enough coaches, salaries were poor, and you know. It was Mahan pride and teamwork, one that's developed from the fortress that is Mudeung Field, that have brought us the dynasty of the eighties and the nineties.' Myeong-Shin cuts it straight with basic overview of the team's early history and identity. 'This continues to this day with seventeen Quebec Series titles.'

In some ways his own career, while not talked about a lot by the player himself, charters along the lines of the WBC-era history of Quebecois baseball. In a decade of his service, the Grim Reapers have quietly emerged from a what-if side on the WBC 48 in Drawkland to a third-place victorious in Zwangzug, with the likes of Heo, Pinson, Horace Choo, and Kevin Buchanan all playing in the biggest moments for their respective clubs abroad. The Tigers and the Lions, two biggest rivals of the QBO league that goes back to the inaugural year 1968, too have written the chapters of their history, with Heo and Pinson spliting their four RLDS matchups, 2-2, in their five seasons before Cassadaigua came calling. Their rivalries would continue in Cassadaigua, where Heo would hit and play third(-base) for the Concord Heights Royals' Pinstripes, while the Brattleboro Brats' B' logo would be evident in Theo-Alexandre Pinson's cap as he stood on bat at fourth.

Now, somehow, and in the most unexpected twist possible, would be made possible as a Quebec Series matchup for the third straight years.

Of course, the whole saga around his best friend's signing for the Montevicio Dodgers, one that had shocked every Quebecois baseball fan, as the aftertaste of the 54th Magic run had settled into a bitter reality. Many would remember how in the last two seasons, the narrative had fallen along the lines of 'Jesus vs. Judas' involving the two fielders, or the possibility of high-spending, flashy Dodgers vs. tough-minded, frugal Tigers, and even to this day the bitterness is felt.

It's something that Myeong-Shin, as the preseason of his third season back with the Tigers, quickly intervenes to control. The two baseballers, who have been lifelong friends, continue to spend much time during the offseason with one another.

'Theo and I have known each other's families for long,' Myeong-Shin says, as he makes a cup of tea for him and the cameraman. 'He has his own family, and I know that Natalie (Gregoris, famous Quebecois actress -e.d.-) and Theo had been thinking about life after baseball as well. Wish I could say more, considering that it's offseason, but believe me. It's a lot harder for them than for me, so I would prefer to respect their space.'

'What if you were on his shoes, Myeong-Shin?' the interviewer hurriedly asks. Myeong-Shin is not impressed.

[Chromatika]

How are things looking after three series? Series 3 Cutoff.

---

WORLD BASEBALL CLASSIC 56

GROUP STAGE - SERIES 3
Chromatik Games were scored by Squornshelan Remnant States

Group A

Game 1
South Newlandia                 0 2 0 6 0 0 0 0 0  8
Aust Scor                       0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0  1

Imperial Haiti                  2 0 0 1 2 6 0 0 0 11
Qasden                          0 0 1 1 0 0 2 1 1  6

Abanhfleft                      0 0 2 0 0 0 0 0 1  3
Ko-oren                         0 4 0 0 0 1 1 0 X  6

Game 2
South Newlandia                 0 1 4 1 0 0 3 1 0 10
Aust Scor                       1 0 0 0 0 2 0 0 0  3

Imperial Haiti                  0 0 1 0 0 0 1 0 0  2
Qasden                          0 0 0 4 0 0 0 0 X  4

Abanhfleft                      0 0 0 0 1 6 1 5 0 13
Ko-oren                         0 2 1 0 1 0 0 2 0  6

Game 3
South Newlandia                 0 2 0 1 1 0 0 2 2  8
Aust Scor                       3 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0  4

Imperial Haiti                  1 0 1 0 0 0 1 2 0  5
Qasden                          0 0 1 0 0 1 0 1 0  3

Abanhfleft                      0 0 0 2 1 0 2 0 0  5
Ko-oren                         0 0 1 0 0 0 2 0 0  3

Group A                 Pld    W   L    RF   RA   RD
1 Abanhfleft              9    7   2    59   33  +26
  South Newlandia         9    7   2    67   41  +26
3 Ko-oren                 9    5   4    49   53   −4
4 Imperial Haiti          9    4   5    41   43   −2
5 Qasden                  9    4   5    41   45   −4
6 Aust Scor               9    0   9    21   63  −42

Group B

Game 1
Zwangzug                        0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0  1
Nova Anglicana                  0 0 0 1 0 0 0 1 X  2

The Greater Nordics             0 0 0 1 2 2 0 0 1  6
The Cannaland Islands           0 0 3 0 2 0 1 1 X  7

Ingont                          0 0 0 2 1 0 0 0 0  3
Dod Rava                        0 2 0 0 0 1 1 0 X  4

Game 2
Zwangzug                        1 0 0 0 2 5 0 0 0  8
Nova Anglicana                  1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0  1

The Greater Nordics             0 0 0 1 0 0 1 1 1  4
The Cannaland Islands           0 0 0 0 0 0 2 0 0  2

Ingont                          0 1 1 1 0 0 5 1 1 10
Dod Rava                        0 1 1 5 0 1 0 0 0  8

Game 3
Zwangzug                        0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 3  3
Nova Anglicana                  0 0 0 2 0 0 4 0 X  6

The Greater Nordics             2 0 1 4 3 0 0 0 0 10
The Cannaland Islands           0 0 0 1 1 0 0 0 0  2

Ingont                          1 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 3  5
Dod Rava                        0 0 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0  2

Group B                  Pld    W   L    RF   RA   RD
1 Zwangzug                 9    7   2    46   20  +26
2 Nova Anglicana           9    6   3    38   29   +9
3 Dod Rava                 9    4   5    43   47   −4
4 Ingont                   9    4   5    41   46   −5
5 The Greater Nordics      9    4   5    42   49   −7
6 The Cannaland Islands    9    2   7    25   44  −19

Group C

Game 1
Zorinitiee                      0 8 1 0 0 0 1 0 0 10
The Eshurium Empire             0 0 0 0 0 0 0 4 0  4

Drawkland                       0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0  0
Quebec & Shingoryeo             2 2 1 0 0 0 0 0 X  5

StrayaRoos                      0 0 0 1 1 0 0 2 0  4
Tikariot                        0 1 2 0 0 0 0 0 3  6

Game 2
Zorinitiee                      0 0 0 0 2 0 0 0 0 0  2
The Eshurium Empire             0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 2 1  3

Drawkland                       0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0  1
Quebec & Shingoryeo             0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 2  3

StrayaRoos                      0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 1  2
Tikariot                        3 0 0 0 1 1 2 2 X  9

Game 3
Zorinitiee                      4 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0  5
The Eshurium Empire             2 1 0 0 0 0 0 2 0 1  6

Drawkland                       1 0 0 2 0 0 0 0 3  6
Quebec & Shingoryeo             0 0 0 0 2 1 0 0 0  3

StrayaRoos                      1 0 2 0 1 0 0 0 0  4
Tikariot                        0 1 2 0 0 3 2 1 X  9

Group C                 Pld    W   L    RF   RA   RD
1 Quebec & Shingoryeo     9    7   2    45   30  +15
2 Drawkland               9    7   2    43   26  +17
3 Zorinitiee              9    4   5    43   30  +13
4 The Eshurium Empire     9    4   5    40   50  −10
5 Tikariot                9    4   5    41   49   −8
6 StrayaRoos              9    1   8    24   51  −27

Group D

Game 1
Katterimunk                     0 0 0 0 1 1 2 0 0  4
South Americanastan             7 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 X  7

Benjium                         0 1 0 0 1 0 1 0 0  3
Super-Llamaland                 0 5 0 0 2 1 0 0 X  8

Sherpa Empire                   2 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0  3
Atheara                         0 0 0 1 1 0 2 0 X  4

Game 2
Katterimunk                     3 0 0 0 0 1 0 1 0  5
South Americanastan             1 0 1 0 0 4 3 0 X  9

Benjium                         0 2 0 0 0 0 0 1 1  4
Super-Llamaland                 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1  1

Sherpa Empire                   0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0  0
Atheara                         0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 X  1

Game 3
Katterimunk                     1 0 0 5 0 0 0 0 3  9
South Americanastan             0 0 0 0 4 1 0 1 0  6

Benjium                         0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0  0
Super-Llamaland                 0 0 0 4 1 0 2 2 X  9

Sherpa Empire                   0 3 1 2 0 0 0 0 1  7
Atheara                         0 0 1 0 0 2 1 0 0  4

Group D                 Pld    W   L    RF   RA   RD
1 Super-Llamaland         9    8   1    56   18  +38
2 Sherpa Empire           9    4   5    44   38   +6
3 Benjium                 9    4   5    36   59  −23
4 Atheara                 9    4   5    37   46   −9
5 South Americanastan     9    4   5    48   46   +2
6 Katterimunk             9    3   6    39   53  −14

Group E

Game 1
HUElavia                        0 1 0 0 0 9 1 0 1 12
New Portland Republic           0 0 1 0 1 0 0 0 1  3

Ranoria                         0 0 0 0 0 2 2 0 0 1  5
The 189                         0 3 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0  4

Liventia                        0 0 3 0 0 0 0 0 2  5
Srednjaci                       1 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 1  3

Game 2
HUElavia                        1 0 1 1 0 0 1 0 0  4
New Portland Republic           0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0  1

Ranoria                         2 0 1 0 2 1 0 1 0  7
The 189                         0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 2  3

Liventia                        2 2 2 0 0 1 0 1 2 10
Srednjaci                       1 0 0 2 2 0 0 0 0  5

Game 3
HUElavia                        0 0 1 0 0 0 1 0 0  2
New Portland Republic           0 5 0 1 0 0 2 1 X  9

Ranoria                         0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0  1
The 189                         0 1 0 0 0 4 0 0 X  5

Liventia                        3 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 2  6
Srednjaci                       0 2 0 0 0 0 2 0 0  4

Group E                  Pld    W   L    RF   RA   RD
1 Liventia                 9    7   2    44   32  +12
2 Ranoria                  9    5   4    35   35    0
3 Srednjaci                9    4   5    37   39   −2
4 HUElavia                 9    4   5    31   41  −10
5 The 189                  9    4   5    45   29  +16
6 New Portland Republic    9    3   6    32   48  −16

Group F

Game 1
The Republic of Covelandia      0 0 0 0 3 0 0 0 1 1  5
Canadian Dominion               0 0 1 0 0 2 0 0 1 0  4

Banija                          0 0 2 0 0 1 3 0 0  6
Hapilopper                      7 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 X  8

Le est de Espanya               0 0 0 1 0 0 0 1 0  2
Eshialand                       0 0 0 0 0 4 0 0 X  4

Game 2
The Republic of Covelandia      0 1 1 1 0 0 1 0 2  6
Canadian Dominion               0 0 2 0 2 0 0 1 0  5

Banija                          0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0  0
Hapilopper                      0 0 0 1 0 0 1 0 X  2

Le est de Espanya               0 0 0 0 0 2 0 0 0  2
Eshialand                       3 0 1 1 0 3 1 0 X  9

Game 3
The Republic of Covelandia      0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0  1
Canadian Dominion               0 0 0 0 2 0 0 1 X  3

Banija                          1 1 0 0 1 0 0 0 1  4
Hapilopper                      0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 2  3

Le est de Espanya               1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1  2
Eshialand                       1 1 0 1 3 1 0 0 X  7

Group F                       Pld    W   L    RF   RA   RD
1 The Republic of Covelandia    9    7   2    46   36  +10
2 Banija                        9    5   4    37   39   −2
3 Eshialand                     9    5   4    50   39  +11
4 Le est de Espanya             9    4   5    30   36   −6
5 Hapilopper                    9    4   5    33   43  −10
6 Canadian Dominion             9    2   7    33   36   −3

Group G

Game 1
Milk Island                     0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0  0
Milchama                        0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 X  1

Melbergia                       0 2 1 0 0 0 1 0 0  4
Caribbia                        0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0  1

TJUN-ia                         0 1 0 0 0 0 0 1 1  3
Barnettsville                   0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0  0

Game 2
Milk Island                     1 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0  3
Milchama                        0 0 0 7 0 0 0 0 X  7

Melbergia                       0 0 0 0 2 0 0 0 0  2
Caribbia                        1 0 2 0 0 0 5 0 X  8

TJUN-ia                         3 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0  3
Barnettsville                   1 0 0 2 0 0 0 3 X  6

Game 3
Milk Island                     2 1 0 2 0 2 0 0 0  7
Milchama                        0 0 0 1 1 0 0 0 0  2

Melbergia                       0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 2 0  2
Caribbia                        0 0 0 0 0 1 1 0 0 2  4

TJUN-ia                         0 2 1 0 1 0 1 0 0  5
Barnettsville                   0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 2  3

Group G                 Pld    W   L    RF   RA   RD
1 Caribbia                9    6   3    47   35  +12
2 Milk Island             9    5   4    37   36   +1
3 TJUN-ia                 9    5   4    31   34   −3
4 Barnettsville           9    4   5    27   29   −2
5 Melbergia               9    4   5    31   31    0
6 Milchama                9    3   6    30   38   −8

Group H

Game 1
America B.W.S.M.H.      0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 2  2
The Star Enpire         2 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 X  3

Chromatika              0 2 0 0 2 2 0 0 0  6
Cassadaigua             0 0 0 2 1 0 0 0 0  3

Oateria                 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 1  2
Loyo                    0 0 0 0 0 0 1 2 X  3

Game 2
America B.W.S.M.H.      0 1 1 0 0 1 0 0 0  3
The Star Enpire         0 1 0 0 0 1 0 0 0  2

Chromatika              1 2 0 2 0 0 0 4 0  9
Cassadaigua             1 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0  2

Oateria                 1 0 0 0 1 6 1 1 0 10
Loyo                    1 0 0 2 0 3 0 3 0  9

Game 3
America B.W.S.M.H.      0 0 0 0 1 0 0 1 4  6
The Star Enpire         0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0  1

Chromatika              0 3 0 0 0 0 2 0 1  6
Cassadaigua             1 0 0 0 2 1 0 0 0  4

Oateria                 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0  1
Loyo                    0 0 0 1 0 0 1 0 X  2

Group H                 Pld    W   L    RF   RA   RD
1 Chromatika              9    7   2    60   27  +33
2 Loyo                    9    6   3    48   51   −3
3 Cassadaigua             9    4   5    44   50   −6
4 America B.W.S.M.H.      9    4   5    47   45   +2
5 The Star Enpire         9    4   5    33   38   −5
6 Oateria                 9    2   7    28   49  −21

[Oateria]

It ain't over till it's over-but it's over for Oateria.

After their second loss to Loyo there became no possible way for the Senatorial Badger Republic to move on to the round of 16. Rudjer Draskovic didn't seem too down, though, noting "We'll come back to play, and when we do, you'd best watch out."

Manager for the WBC Hajak Mutric has been questioned on his reliability during the series, specifically taking out pitchers too early or leaving them in for too long. His job as manager of the Mes Roges Banshees may be his to prove come next season.

Edit: RCS apologizes for the misprinted headline. The group stage is a double round robin, and the original headline was supposed to be "Oateria struggles against Loyo" with Draskovic saying "We'll come back" referring to the series against Cassadaigua.

[America But With Slightly More Hazelnuts]

Great moments in American history, #3
1971

In all sectors of society there should be roughly equal prospects of culture and achievement for everysquirrel similarly motivated and endowed. The expectations of those with the same abilities and aspirations should not be affected by their social class. Nor by how many hazelnuts they have.

In 1971, the great American philosopher John Rawls published his magnum opus, the book A Theory of Justice But With Slightly More Hazelnuts. One of the classic works of the 20th century, it revitalized political philosophy. Unusually for academic philosophers, he is still often cited by jurists and politicians, and his thinking has had a wide impact beyond the shores of the United Squirrels: for example, during the Tiananmen Square protests in 1989 as Chinese red squirrels protested against the government, student protestors could be seen brandishing copies of Rawls's work.

A Theory of Justice But With Slightly More Hazelnuts is a dense work of analytic philosophy. One of its core concepts is that of the "veil of ignorance", in which a group of squirrels are charged with agreeing on laws and principles for regulating society, but do so without knowing the particulars of their own identity, such as fur color, tail length, subspecies, sex, etc. Rawls holds that such a situation will naturally do away with discriminatory laws (such as a law barring ground squirrels from holding political office or prohibiting female squirrels from owning personal property) because it would be fundamentally irrational for any squirrel, not knowing whether or not they themselves might be affected by such a law, to propose such restrictions.

Rawls goes on to lay out his two main "principles of justice": the "liberty principle", and the "equality principle". According to Rawls, everyone has the right to the maximal liberty commensurate with an equal amount of liberty for all others. This is sometimes colloquially summarized as: "my right to swing my paw ends at the tip of your nose". The basic liberties that Rawls considers to fall under this principle include, most importantly, the right to hazelnuts, but also the right to vote (for more hazelnuts), freedom of speech (such as expressing an opinion on the tastiness of hazelnuts), petition (such as asking for more hazelnuts) and assembly (such as gathering an association for the promotion of hazelnuts), freedom from arbitrary arrest (for possession of hazelnuts) and freedom from oppression (denial of hazelnuts).

The equality principle admits that inequalities may still exist in this society, but that they should be ordered to the greatest benefit of the least advantaged i.e. those with the fewest hazelnuts.

Rawls's work attracted diverse criticism, from the right (Robert Nutzick's Anarchy, State, Nutopia being the classic libertarian rejoinder) and left (such as the Communitarian Critique offered by virtue ethicist Alasdair Macadamia-nut) and has been reinterpreted by environmentalists and feminists. Despite being a dry academic text, it has sold hundreds of thousands of copies, and Rawls is acclaimed as one of the relatively few philosophers to have achieved treehouse-hold name recognition in the 20th century. A great figure in post-New Left political liberalism, his work has influenced areas of public policy from welfare reform to constitutional law.

[Super-Llamaland]

Here’s a swing and a towering fly ball to right field, going back is Bill Parent…
but he’s got no shot at that one! A mammoth home run for Nicolas Perez!

Fastball down the middle, strike three, the runner goes, and Löfgren guns him down!
A strike ‘em out throw ‘em out double play for the dynamic duo of Nakamura Jossei and Sofia Löfgren!

Infield in, the pitch to Bellefeuille…soft liner and that’ll get over the infield!
Henry will score from third, and the Renaissance have again defied all odds to steal another game at the death!

Huang ranging to his left, the throw to Wagner, the relay to Perez, and it’s a double play!
Erik McGuire unleashes an earthshaking fist pump as the Nova Anglican reliever escapes the jam!

High fly ball to center, Duffy is tracking back, back at the wall, and makes a leaping catch!
Schuyler Duffy with an absolute web gem of a play, and the Renaissance are still alive!

that’s OUT OF HERE! One swing of the bat and Valery Robiquet has tied the ball game at three runs apiece!

Swing and a miss, strike three!
Another dominant half-inning for Solveig Jørgensen, and the Renaissance are cruising here in southern Super-Llamaland!

The Xingcheng Renaissnace once again find themselves three outs from history! Can they do it again?

---

BALL OR NOTHING: the XINGCHENG RENAISSANCE

episode 13

Like the Renaissance, the New Llama Cyclones were unfancied as contenders going into the season. Stuck in a division with the juggernaut Vargas City Lions, consistently one of the most loaded teams in the league, and stuck in a city with the defending champion New Llama Wizards, they came into the season with only the fourth-best odds of winning the Llamanean association, behind the Lions, Wizards, and recently-felled Athletics. But despite having the worst record of all Llamanean playoff teams, and seriously slumping in the final month of the season, they’ve fended off the two teams with the best records, besting the Wizards in a crosstown Wild Card Game before fending off Vargas City in a wild divisional series.

Maia is the fifth reliever of the night for Vargas City, but arguably the one under the most pressure. Here’s the payoff pitch to Corbin, Schuster and Werner take off…swung on and driven down the left-field line - FAIR BALL! Corbin going for extra bases - Schuster scores easily, and Werner will follow! Rene Corbin is the thirteenth-inning hero as the Cyclones take a 5-3 lead over the Lions!

And they continue their sudden hot streak against the Renaissance. Of course, Xingcheng pull off another miracle ninth inning in game one to preserve their home-field advantage…

Infield in, the pitch to Bellefeuille…soft liner and that’ll get over the infield! Henry will score from third, and the Renaissance have defied all odds to steal another game at the death!

But unlike the Athletics, the Cyclones hit back hard. Home runs from Lonnie Hayter and Ivy Werner put them up four runs in the first inning of game two, and a late comeback attempt fizzles out with the lead simply too big to manage. And the capital club flex their muscles in a devastating game three, in which April Bendtner turns back the clock for six innings of two-hit ball while Nakamura Jossei has another rocky start, giving up six runs in three innings as the capital club surge to a 11-2 win. Despite this, many fans remain optimistic about the team’s season.

”I mean, the Cyclones are just a complete buzzsaw right now, getting out of that SLL Central, and they were arguably the best team in the league before they caught all those injuries at the end of the season. No shame in losing here, especially if we can make it close.”
“No shame at all!”

“We’re ahead of schedule, anyways. We just had to get past Nikcoro this year, maybe win a series…”
“Yeah, the Renaissance are playing with house money at this point. We’re not overleveraged like the New Llama clubs are. We’ve got a fun young core, and even if the Cyclones get by us, we’ll be back.”

“Who’s the oldest guy in our lineup. Perez, who’s like 27? And all homegrown, more or less.”
“Tell ‘em, Carson.”

Maybe it’s the years of underperformance - including last season, when the Renaissance had the best run differential in the division but finished ten games under .500 - that have made Xingcheng fans so realistic. Maybe it’s partially the city itself - Xingcheng is known as an academic center, housing the likes of Xingcheng Polytechnic and Corbin Island University, two of the nation’s premier institutions. Although the two universities do hold their own on the college diamond, all that rationality might just be spilling over into how they assess their team’s prospects. But maybe that extra belief could’ve helped the Renaissance get over the line in Game Four, in which they lose 4-3 despite a late rally.

”Look at Sylvi, y’all! She brought in $10K for the sharks!”
“Fucking hell, you’re making the rest of us look bad. Teacher’s pet, am I right?”
“Call me when you’re off the league minimum, Nate.”

The clubhouse, though, is Jacinta MacRaun’s domain. And the hard-set rules of rationality don’t apply here. MacRaun has gained a reputation as superstitious and mysterious, something that has both frustrated and excited the fanbase. Her decisions sometimes cost the team dearly - her bullpen management last season, which the analytics types blamed for Xingcheng’s failure to win the division, almost got her fired. But when it works, like her vibes-based decision to have Billy Kemp hit for Valery Robiquet against South Falls, it’s delightful. And even when results are mixed, it’s a refreshing taste of the era where managers weren’t just rubber stamps on a spreadsheet.

Before Game Five begins, the Xingcheng Renaissance are proud to announce that they will be donating $150,000 to the Southern Nandao Shark Rehabilitation Center, with every player and coach contributing to the fund. Here with us are manager Jacinta MacRaun and SNSRC managing director Emery Batistuta!

The Nandaozhou Sharks were previously the region’s biggest team, home to the legendary pitcher Justin Zheng. While neither they nor Xingcheng found much success, the Sharks picked up a huge, passionate fanbase from their working-class base in Nandaozhou. But the Renaissance were favored over the Sharks to join the LPB, reportedly due to some backroom influence from university powerbrokers. And the team’s snakebitten nature in recent years has been blamed on “The Sharks’ Curse”, although it doesn’t seem to be particularly effective this season. Still, though, the publicity stunt seems to get the team back on their feet, with another late comeback.

Guo facing Löfgren, here’s the second pitch - roped down the left field line, and that’s going to score two! Enrique slides to cut it off, but the damage is done, and the Renaissance retake the lead here in the eighth!

In the clubhouse, the mood is buoyed by another comeback victory. But they still have quite the hill to climb.

[Drawkland]

Meet the Base Corps Battery
Due to the catchers on the roster only taking up three spots (as expected), we decided to lump them in with the starting rotation as well. After all, these two sets of players are well-acquainted with each other, forming each side of the battery for a majority of the tournament.

As for the catchers themselves, each one brings a certain aspect to the table. Peters and Calebs will be splitting time behind the dish, and Calebs will be likely to pinch hit for Peters late in games when the Corps needs more power but can't risk wasting a substitution on a non-catcher. Jones, despite being listed at catcher, will exclusively inhabit the DH spot. If both Peters and Calebs are unavailable to catch somehow, it's likely that Richelle Shard (OF) will be selected to catch instead, as she has more experience catching in the last 5 years than Jones does.

Peters is likely in his final WBC appearance, mostly serving as a mentor for the pitching staff and Cooper Calebs, to ensure the transition to a Peters-less Corps in future cycles is smooth.

Dan Peters - #1

---

Catcher

---

Bats: Right / Throws: Right / Team: Bellator Cavaliers [DRK]

---

This is going to be the last hurrah for Dan Peters. The Base Corps backstop has been an important piece of the team for many cycles now, on top of a borderline Hall of Fame domestic career. Peters began his career as an above-average hitter at catcher, but throughout his career he's really established himself as an excellent defensive and pitching catcher. His ability to call pitches, create chemistry with the pitching staff, and hose baserunners has made him the catching legend he is today. Over the past couple cycles his bat has been slowly regressing, but last season he actually had a new renaissance at the plate, hitting double digit homeruns for the first time in years and greatly improving his average. Though he's still a bottom-of-the-lineup guy for the Corps, but opposing pitchers disregard Peters at their own peril.

Cooper Calebs - #2

---

Catcher

---

Bats: Right / Throws: Right / Team: Drawk Corps [DRK]

---

Meanwhile, Cooper Calebs is presumed to be the starting Base Corps catcher for the next half decade at least. Calebs has slightly above average defensive skills behind the dish, but he's most dangerous in the batter's box himself. He's won the last four silver sluggers at the catcher position, and he even has solid speed for a backstop (we don't know how long that'll last, though). Obviously he's the better offensive choice compared to Peters, but against the best baserunners in baseball, you want the best backstop to be throwing them out. This is the second cycle on the Corps for Calebs, learning behind the legendary Dan Peters. He will get solid playing time this cycle as well: for games without a DH, manager Sutton has decided to have Calebs start, as his increase in power over Peters could make up for the lost lineup spot for the pitcher hitting.

Franky Jones - #99

---

Designated Hitter, Catcher

---

Bats: Right / Throws: Right / Team: Masmow Dragons [SNL]

---

Technically Franky Jones is listed as a catcher, but he will only play that position in an extreme emergency. Jones's role on this roster is simple: he's the designated Designated Hitter. Similar to his role on the Dragons in the LPB, he's a large and lumbering player whose upside comes from his wicked power bat: driving in runs and putting the ball in play as needed is his game. Objectively he's not an amazing player, but his consistency at DH and clutch hitting make him an invaluable asset for a team with a lot of question marks. Due to his advanced age, this is likely his last Classic as well.

When you think of the Base Corps, you typically think of pitching meltdowns and offensive failure. Ironically, the starting rotation for the Corps is usually pretty solid, featuring a full complement of aces and elite #2 starters on domestic rosters. When you think about the Corps giving up a ton of runs, it's almost always late in the game when the starter is gassed and/or the bullpen is weak. The core of this rotation has remained relatively the same, but is likely to experience big changes in the next few seasons.

These players are listed in approximate order of the rotation, though it is subject to change based on how the season is going. Some players may be shifted around due to bullpen days, shoddy performance, or whatever else. Claire Kirkland in particular may be moved up or down a game in the rotation to take advantage of a non-DH road game, since she's an above average hitter (by pitcher's standards).

Leo Roy - #22

---

Ace Starter

---

Bats: Right / Throws: Right / Team: Masmow Dragons [SNL]

---

4-seam fastball, cutter, slider, 12-6 curve, changeup, power curve

---

Leo Roy is the best Drawkian pitcher in the game, and he has been for several years. From his lanky frame, he can unleash over a half dozen different pitches, and place them wherever he wants in the zone. The accuracy helps his already-elite stamina; he crowds the zone early and forces hitters to swing, allowing him to work deep into games. Though he's not really known as a power pitcher, he's been known to pop his fastball for triple digits on occasion. His greatest weakness is the longball, as most of his opponent's runs come courtesy of solo shots. Most of the time, though, he's dominant in racking up strikeouts and weak contact.

Darien Rodriguez - #44

---

Veteran Starter

---

Bats: Right / Throws: Right / Team: Elephant Valley Homers [SNL]

---

4-seam fastball, curveball, slider, slurve, screwball

---

The elder statesman Darien Rodriguez is a master of movement. He has a common repertoire of several breaking balls, all with sharp break and a similar delivery off the mound. The name of the game for Rodriguez is swing-and-miss or weak contact. Even if hitters try to focus on one of the breakers, Rodriguez employs a sharp and accurate fastball which also comes out of his hand similar to his other pitches. He can also pitch deep into games depending on the workload, though his tendency for late inning pitching has dropped as he's aged. This is likely his last season on the Corps.

Bruce Moore - #69

---

Starter

---

Bats: Right / Throws: Right / Team: Corinth City Blazers [DRK]

---

Knuckleball, 4-seam fastball, knuckle curve, circle change, eephus

---

To put it concisely, Bruce Moore is an oddball pitcher. One of the few knuckleballers still pitching in the modern day, he's unequivocally the best of them. His knuckleball, fastball, and changeup form a three-speed system that leaves most batters guessing. If that wasn't enough, he also has a looping knuckle curve to throw off batters on their second or third at-bat of the game. Due to the low strain repertoire, Moore can also go deep into games, but he generally doesn't pitch past the sixth as hitters can get their bearings against him after a third at-bat. Still, he's an invaluable asset and a quirky pitcher to break up the routine of an opposing lineup.

Syd Masterson - #45

---

Starter

---

Bats: Left / Throws: Left / Team: Xingcheng Renaissance [SLL]

---

Sinker, changeup, 4-seam fastball, curveball

---

Syd Masterson is your classic sinker-changeup ground ball defensive pitcher. He throws strikes, forces weak contact, and usually gets through the game quickly. His sinker and 4-seamer live in the mid-90s, but age has started to slow them down a little bit. Despite that, he's usually a good option to take some stress off the bullpen. Some people have doubts on whether Syd Masterson should continue to be on the Base Corps due to his tendency for blowup starts, but his ability to pitch late into games and presence as a lefty starting pitcher make him a great asset to the Corps. Maybe he'll be on the way out soon, but regardless he's likely to have some good starts in this Classic.

Claire Kirkland - #31

---

Rookie Starter

---

Bats: Switch / Throws: Right / Team: Sadeg Knights [DRK]

---

4-seam fastball, cutter, slider, changeup, 2-seam fastball

---

Claire Kirkland had a remarkable rookie campaign with the Sadeg Knights, winning rookie of the year for her elite play on the mound and placing third in voting for pitcher of the year. She's a bona fide power pitcher, with a triple-digit fastball, upper 90s cutter, and a wicked slider in the low 90s. For most batters, that three-pitch mix of movement and speed is enough to put them down, but she also employs a straight changeup from time to time. She's one of the hottest young pitchers in the league right now, and the hype surrounding her (it helps that she plays in the large Sadeg market) earned her a spot on the Base Corps rotation with the retirement of Mike Kavana. Did we mention she can hit pretty well? Kirkland isn't exactly good enough to be considered a two-way player, but she puts up numbers around the level of a utility bench bat.

[Banija]

WBBL Struggles: LPB overtakes WBBL as most popular baseball league in Banija, as owners 'sound the proverbial alarm'


Banijan baseball fans during the WBBL Championship Series

ISTRIA, MORAVICA- "There is no doubt about it- the world's best baseball is played elsewhere." Said the Executive Chairman of the Olympic Committee of Banija, Patrick Zervos. He's got a challenge in front of him with baseball in Banija. The shock death of the Executive Vice President of the baseball division(well, maybe not so shock- an 87 year old having a heart attack is not exactly uncommon), who also served as the Commissioner of the WBBL, has left the hands of the sport in Patrick Zervos. A newer Executive Chair of the Olympic Committee, he had a great start, with Banija setting all sorts of national records at the Olympiad in the Twin Cities, shattering historical records for medals, and getting sport specific great finishes in everything except for track & field(where, shockingly, we regressed). It's rare that a sport as large as this comes outside of the Administration of the baseball divison, but alas- desperate times.

Now, the national team is doing quite fine. At the most recent Olympiad, of course, the men's baseball team won a gold medal. That meant that, in every major competition this team has been in, we've won at least once- an Olympic gold, the AO Baseball Series, and the grand-daddy of 'em all, the World Baseball Classic(twice, with a third appearance in the Final). At the NT level, where most of the world interacts with Banijan baseball, things seem to be going quite well. And although we did get KO'd in the Round of 16(just the second time we had not reached the last 8 in the last 10 classics), that's because we lost an epic, 5 game bout, to the pre-eminent power that the sport has to offer- that power, of course, being Cassadaigua.

Baseball is more popular than ever in this country. Only 3 years ago, was it the first time where every single BCSG institution offered the sport of baseball- making college baseball extremely competitive here, and very well attended. Record amounts of kids(with Banijan population growth) are playing the sport, as the opportunities are bound. And even WBBL attendance is skyrocketing, alongside both the attendance and the television ratings of the national team. So then, one might ask- what is wrong?

Despite serious population growth powering financial and TV rating growth across the country in sports leagues (the GFLB and the S-FPL come to mind), this growth, for whatever reason, has not reached the WBBL. When Banija's population was in the 100 million range and just starting, the TV ratings have basically stayed the same- which means, now that our population is in the 140 million range, that they have practically begun shrinking. The LPB is now the most watched baseball league on television in Banija. The quality, the talent, the administration, etc... Everything is better. The WBBL continues to operate as a regional league- it's still called the Western Banijan Baseball League, with all of its teams on the West Coast, despite the sport clearly having national popularity.

Team owners have started to sound the alarm. "Look- domestic baseball in Banija is going to go the way of basketball really soon." Said a team owner. "We need to do something about it." But of course, the powers that be within Banijan baseball remain hopelessly divided- which makes this next hire by Patrick Zervos oh so important. The basketball reference refers to the Banijan professional basketball league system- there are 3 different pro basketball leagues, who do not cooperate on any level. The lack of cooperation prevents them from participating in IUBC competition, which mean Banija's players are forced to go abroad and compete elsewhere. Despite the clear abundance of basketball talent in Banija(4 IBC titles, plus a NSCAA title), Banija's leagues are considered to be 'extremely weak'.

Basketball's a lost cause. But baseball- that can be helped. "Expansion, and a name change, are probably in order." Said a TV analyst. "No need for the league to be western anymore. But what about beyond that?" Patrick Zervos said that, as he looks to hire a new EVP for the Baseball Division, he expects them to have 'bold visions'.

"Look- all of our best players are consistently saying that they have to go abroad to get access to the best stuff. And the worst part? They are absolutely right. Playing in South Newlandia, Super-Llamaland, Chromatika, etc... Anywhere in the LPB, that's the absolute highest level that this sport gets to. But why is that? We can do better here, at home. Focusing here, colloborating elsewhere, etc... Domestic baseball in Banija is down. But it is certainly not out. With some fresh and bold leadership, who are not afraid to push boundaries, we're going to resurrect the domestic baseball scene in this country."

WBC 56 Mini-News

- Banija traveled to Hapilopper and dropped 2 of 3 to their southwestern AO neighbors, to drop to 5-4 in this Classic.
- Game 1 mini summary: The Banijans could not overcome a terrible start from the #2 pitcher in their rotation. Kopa Mosego allowed 7 runs in just 1/3rd of an inning, eventually being pulled when the Banijans were down 7-0 in the bottom of the first, with just 1 out gone and the bases loaded. While we did our best to claw back, most notably with a three run bomb by Ugonna Akachi to make it 7-6 after seven innings, that deficit was simply too large to overcome for this NT, as we eventually fell, 8-6.
- Game 2 mini summary: Banija got blanked for the second time in the first 9 games of this tournament, as Odongo Lutaakome dropped a pitcher's duel on the road, 2-0. It was no fault of his- allowing just two earned runs after 7 innings. He even got a base hit of his own! But he could not outpitch the Hapilopper staff on the night. "We've got a young team, especially at the plate, and sometimes, that can lead to inconsistency." Isaac Oladipo told reporters. "But while we're looking out for the long-term, this is a team that we think can win short-term as well. The consistency at the plate will come- we're just figuring things out still at the international level. Not a ton of veterans to help young guys along, so performances like this every once in a while are expected."
- Game 3 mini summary: While Hapilopper fans brought their brooms in full force to the last game of the series, the Banijans prevented them from using them. Having fallen to .500 at just 4-4, we scratched and clawed our way to a tight, 4-3 victory over Hapilopper, to at least take 1 of 3. Manufacturing runs in the 1st, 2nd, and 5th was the doing for this team. Our starter was dominant- with Dzunani Mazuze throwing 8 innings of one run ball. We took a 4-1 lead into the 9th, and gave the ball straight to our closer, Oyella Lagum. He struggled again(the second time he's allowed 2 runs in the 9th inning of a save effort!), but we limped across the line. The 'pen has historically been the issue for this team, and now, it is no different.
- Looking ahead: Banija looks ahead to what is suddenly a huge home series, against a first place Covelandia squad. The unranked team has taken the group by storm, getting off to a strong 7-2 start. We'll start off with the knuckler on the mound for game 1, with our ace for game 2. Oladipo said that the series was a 'prove it' series. "Look, everybody says this, everyone says that- let's show what we're made of." He told reporters. "Forget rankings, odds, etc... All I know is that Covelandia are two games clear at the top of the group, sitting at 7-2. They sit with a +10 run differential. They're a surprise team playing elite baseball, and it's going to take everything we've got if we want to win this series, and keep ourselves in the top half of this group."

[Milk Island]

Welcome to AM 1080 Milk Island Sports radio today we've got game 1 of Series 3 for WBC 56 Where our Milk Island Pandas are Playing the Milchama Swords Here we are first inning... Beautifully pitched inning by both starters 2ND inning here Milchama hitting and great hit by Holny... Bases loaded two outs Now batting Bayta Jones Bases loaded 2 outs He hits a fly ball deep right field and it is gonnnnnn Caught! He robs the home run! GREAT CATCH BY PUIG... Bottom of the third.... Now batting Pitcher Neta Rothsenns He hits a deep fly ball and its gone HOME RUN... to the top of the ninth 2 outs 1-0 Swords Tenli Food pitching trying to close the game out against hitter Pete Luck and 2 fastballs in a row for strikes Pandas down to their last strike and he throws the curveball STRIKEOUT Swords win Pandas move down to 2nd in Group G and Swords stay in last! See you later for Game 2 on AM 1080 Milk Island sports radio! Click here for Game Times

Ill do another game annoucing at 6:00 Pm PST 8 central and 9 eastern

[Milchama]

"God we're playing poorly"

"I barely want to watch"

"Me neither"

"Well that would explain the lack of RP"

"It would"

"Either that or just being extremely busy"

"That would also"

"Do you want to pray to Margaret?"

"Sure, couldn't hurt at this point"

"Ok then"

"Ok say as I say and do as I do"

''Ringa pakia!''
''Uma tiraha!''
''Turi whatia!''
''Hope whai ake!''
''Waewae takahia kia kino!''
''Ka mate, ka mate''
''Ka ora, ka ora''
''Ka mate, ka mate''
''Ka ora, ka ora''
''Tēnei te tangata pūhuruhuru''
''Nāna nei i tiki mai whakawhiti te rā''
''Ā upane, ka upane''
''Whiti te rā, hī!''

"Now repeat after me!"

"Forini! Forini!"
"Finidi! Finidi!"
"George! George!"
"Oh Brother! Oh brother!"

*They strip and run around for 18 minutes*

"We pray the Margaret of SnubNose 38 and Random Number God that you may deliver us victory over all our group members and any other infidels that we face in international play"

"Sacrifice the Rubber Chicken!"

*Swoosh of an axe and the chicken is dead*

"Margaret we pray that you take this sacrifice of a rubber chicken in good faith and that by your deliverance Milchama does well in all international competitions"

"Come on You Warriors!"

"Let's Go Milchama!"

[Milchama]

Welcome to AM 1080 Milk Island Sports radio today we've got game 1 of Series 3 for WBC 56 Where our Milk Island Pandas are Playing the Milchama Swords Here we are first inning... Beautifully pitched inning by both starters 2ND inning here Milchama hitting and great hit by Holny... Bases loaded two outs Now batting Bayta Jones Bases loaded 2 outs He hits a fly ball deep right field and it is gonnnnnn Caught! He robs the home run! GREAT CATCH BY PUIG... Bottom of the third.... Now batting Pitcher Neta Rothsenns He hits a deep fly ball and its gone HOME RUN... to the top of the ninth 2 outs 1-0 Swords Tenli Food pitching trying to close the game out against hitter Pete Luck and 2 fastballs in a row for strikes Pandas down to their last strike and he throws the curveball STRIKEOUT Swords win Pandas move down to 2nd in Group G and Swords stay in last! See you later for Game 2 on AM 1080 Milk Island sports radio!

"Wait a second!"

"What?"

"They called us the Swords!!!"

"Yeah can't they read a roster post?!"

"Like we're the Warriors"

"And it's only mentioned in the roster post like 16 times"

"And I think they read it because they put in

"For christ sake know some Hebrew children, we're War in Hebrew of course we're the Warriors"

"Who the f--- are the Swords? What kind of dumbass nickname is that?"

"It's almost as bad as Pandas"

"Yeah what a terrible nickname"

"They're probably fictional, all they do is sleep all day, and they eat a stupid tree"

"Pandas don't even want to have sex, all they want to do is eat the stupid tree"

"Also, they're name is Milk Island, clearly the correct nickname is the Almonds, Soy Boys, or Cows"

"Cows have the same aesthetic as pandas black and white but only one of them can be tipped for fun"

"True it's much better! Also cows produce milk which is useful and don't eat stupid trees"

"Nope cows just look kinda stupid all day"

"But when you compare that to a panda it's much better"

"Definitely"

"I also just figured out that panda's might be bad at milk anyways https://royalsociety.org/news/2015/10/complex-composition-of-panda-mothers-milk/"

"Interesting"

"So what in the bleeding hell is swords?"

"I have no idea but kids these days really need to learn how to read"

"And maybe take a history lesson or two"

"Yeah learn about Margaret you young'uns"

"Ugh"

"The worst"

[TJUN-ia]

After we bounced back with our first series win of the campaign in a top-seed showdown, the Battin' Jags of TJUN-ia were back to 3-3 and looking to continue their positive momentum as we advance into the rest of this 1st part of the regular season. Having the double-header glorious return to Portside see a 3-3 split wasn't exactly ideal, but 3-3 was a lot better than 2-4 or anything below that and we still had plenty of time to turn things around. Phillip Hellas-Verona was still promoting patience, hoping people wait until the first break of this group stage before we talk about 'expectations', especially in the New Era.

Game 1 (TJU 3-0 BAR)
Our first road series would be up against a fellow 3-3 side in the form of #26 Barnettsville, a team famous for playing classic (as in not modern) baseball through and through. Shin Suzuki would start this one and this game could be easily described as an old-school shutout, as that is exactly what we got. Suzuki stayed firm in his resolve and simply didn't allow a single run past his glove at all. It was in that backdrop that we played this game and in the end, 3 runs was all we needed to win this game - with solo bombs from Svetlana Mykvinich, Stefan von Shültz and Suzuki himself capping off the night. 3-0 in the end, a great start to this series.

Game 2 (TJU 3-6 BAR)
Harrison Kyle would start a Game 2 that would head in one direction, and then change course right into another. We started off very strongly as Anastasia Mykvinich hit a 3-run bomb at the top of the 1st...but that would end up being the only runs we would score all game. The bats went frozen solid after that and Barnettsville basically had 9 innings to climb back into this contest, going up to 3-1 after 1 to 3-3 after 4 to 6-3 after 8 in a contest that ensured that Game 3 would end up deciding the series overall. Just wasn't our day, but we have to move on.

Game 3 (TJU 5-3 BAR)
Kim Tsu-Ka would start a decider that had a few twists and turns left in the barrel and they would all come out to play here. We started out hot with 3 unanswered runs via a 2-run HR for von Shültz and Santino Fenatti bringing home Kim with an RBI but the hosts would get one back to make it 3-1 after the 3rd. We would add 2 more runs as we looked to pull away, with bombs from Joe Gregory and Holly Davids setting us up with the 5-1 lead and while the hosts added 2 more in the bottom of the 9th, the introduction of Carlos Buena would make sure this 5-3 win and the 2-1 series win was ours.


It certainly wasn't easy but at 5-4, we're certainly getting back on track in the race to the WBC title. Our final series of this 1st act will be up against debutants Caribbia, who will enter The Diamond in The Gardens of New Washington with the group lead at 6-4. This series may end up being critical in the long run, so expect fireworks the next time we meet. GO BATTIN' JAGS!

---

SCHEDULE (Group G)
S1: vs Melbergia (UR) - Rounders Field, Portside L 1-2 (5th)
S2: vs Milchama (9) - Rounders Field, Portside W 2-1 (5th)
S3: @Barnettsville (26) W 2-1 (3rd)
S4: vs Caribbia (UR) - The Diamond in The Gardens, New Washington
---------------------BREAK---------------------
S5: @Milk Island (UR)
S6: @Melbergia (UR) - O'Halloran Ballpark, Portvestir
S7: @Milchama (9)
---------------------BREAK---------------------
S8: vs Barnettsville (26) - The Diamond in The Gardens, New Washington
S9: @Caribbia (UR) - Ballpark of Caribbia, Yeir
S10: vs Milk Island (UR) - Rounders Field, Portside

[Atheara]

League, Pt. III
He got the greenlight, not just from the teams, but from her as well.

Phone call after phone call, email after email, text after text. Sorting everything out between him and the older baseball teams of Atheara was quite a difficult hitch to deal with, but he was able to persuade all of the team owners to meet with him in what would be known as "The First Instigation". In short, it was basically a meeting to discuss the prospect of the Athearan Baseball National. After reviewing on how the entire tournament would work, Kevin Laycent - Nuzel was able to get a good gripe on what he had proposed in the new document he had created. There were two different competitions. The Conferences and The Championship. For The Conferences, there were three proposed conferences. The West, Central, and East Conferences respectively. And as for the Championship, it was a standard knockout stage competition with a few added changes.

Due to the unequal amount of teams and due to their already determined locations, The West and East Conferences would have only nine teams each while The Central Conference would have ten. This is to correspond to each team's home stadium. For all conferences, each team faces other teams on home and away ground which in short means a standard double round robin. Eight teams from the twenty eight within three conferences will qualify for The Championship in order to attain the title of "National Champions". The Central Conference will have three qualifying slots, while both West and East Conferences will have two each. The third placed teams of The West and East Conferences will then fight it out to earn that sacred eighth place qualifying slot. The eight teams then head into a knockout round where each match is a best of seven series. The grand finals of The Championship will be a best of nine. The Minister of Sports kind of sighs at the conclusion of that.

A best of seven for knockout rounds and a best of nine for the finals. That sounds extremely brutal and he knows that, but it's to make up the not played games within series for baseball in the conferences. There were several other reasons as to why, but they weren't to much of a concern. It's a fair trade off, plus he guarantees that there will be gaps of time for players to rest after each match. It shouldn't become too much of a problem with the only issues being the amount of time required that would need to be spared, but Kevin doesn't think it'll be that much of a bother. And he might even switch it to a best of five for knockouts and a best of seven for the finals if baseball continues to grow in Atheara, so it wasn't that big of an issue. So now all he needed to do was prepare himself for the meeting. But he was kind of nervous. They would be meeting somewhere different, a completely new place for Kevin and he wasn't sure how well he would be received. A lot of the new faces were also unfamiliar to him.

As he was thinking about the meeting as a whole, he heard a few knocks on the door. 'That's a bit odd.' Kevin thought to himself, considering no one tends to visit him within these hours of work. Curious on who in the world would want to talk to him at this time, he heads towards the door and opens it. "Ah, greetings maam. Quite the surprise for you to visit, come in." Kevin said. Turns out the one at the door was the Councilliate herself, Eriana Delis. As she entered the room, she sat down on the couch as the Minister of Sports served some tea. Apparently, she had heard what in the world Kevin was planning behind those constantly locked doors of his. Likely from Kletzka talking about it, considering she was the only one Kevin told about the project. "The ABN... I still approve of the project, Kev. But one thing lingers in my mind... How can you guarantee baseball will grow here? The nation is already dominated by football, with several other sports trying to compete. And now you want baseball." She said. Kevin took a bit of time to reply.

"Well, there's no guarantee that this will be a completely successful project. But you've seen the Athearan fans that do show up, they want to see their players. Our players, for our nation. I think they will enjoy our players having a professional league." Kevin said as his reply. Eriana could only giggle as she sipped her tea, as the two continued to discuss about the project. Kevin even brought up the meeting and his newfound nervousness, much to the surprise of Eriana. She always thought he was the typ to be confident enough to speak and take control of some situations. She guesses this one wasn't really the same case. "I'm sure you'll do fine Kevin. I believe you can do it, I trust you witht his. You didn't become the Minister of Sports for nothing, did you?" Eriana said and asked. Kevin laughed a bit and gave a nod. "Of course." That was his simple reply. After a while further, Eriana eventually gave her leave. With whatever spark he was given, Kevin was ready for The First Instigation.

After some time, The First Instigation came and as it now went...

After The First Instigation, Kevin felt quite happy and relieved. He was treated well as the meeting took place outside the capital, in another city. Hellen Savetsk wasn't a well known city, so it made the perfect location for a meeting of this importance. No one seemed to bat an eye when so many vehicles parked at a single building, as no one knew why. The city was known for it's street racing, something which is considered illegal in Atheara, but has been given massive leniency within Hellen Savetsk. The city is literally known within The Republic as "The Racing Sanctum". Back to the point, Kevin was all smiles as he shook the hand of the team owner of the Ausborne Drums. He discussed the prospect of the Athearan Baseball National, among a lot of other points that he had to make and state. There was also a lot of debating on certain points of the National which he didn't mind. He was happy with the Instigation's result. He then decided to go buy some coffee before heading back home.

Across the building that was used for The First Instigation was a relatively popular coffee shop. As he waited to order for his coffee, he was getting a few messages asking on how the meeting went. His answer was generally the same, "Went well, agreed to things and changed a few aspects." A he got his preferred coffee after waiting for only seven minutes, he went to his cab and the driver would drive him to the train station. "I'll have to make a speech announcing this, aren't I?" Kevin muttered to himself, the driver could only give a small nod saying yes. The Minister of Sports kind of laughed. Well, it seems his job was done for one part and it only just began for another. Hopefully everything goes well for this second part of the task at hand.

[Cassadaigua]

WBC Returns to Concord Heights,
by Chelsea Dufresne, Concord Heights Times

There could be nothing, so we thought, that could spoil the amazing atmosphere surrounding Dagan Airways Stadium. Think about a long, cold winter, and how excited and energized you become when it finally becomes spring. Optimism is rediscovered as you look ahead for the brighter days. World Baseball Classic games have not been played here in Concord Heights since the 53rd edition. And that was dark. That was the Classic that may have been the beginning of a rough stretch of baseball. Classic #52 wasn't a dream, either, but at least they made the playoffs. Afterwards, Maddie Polanco stepped down, and it took a while for the nation to recover. Ranked twelfth in the 53rd Classic, you would have expected the team to be competitive, but it never happened and it would be even worse in the 54th edition. For Cassadaigua's concern, the home qualifying games were in Grande Mountain for that Classic, if you recall. They were not spared a dismal campaign, and CAB (Cassadagan Association for Baseball) quickly dismissed the notion that maybe the team would play better outside our largest city.

The program was on sharp decline. New baseball programs were emerging. Known baseball programs were becoming stronger, and there was nothing that Cassadaigua was doing to adjust. CAB would try to make changes, and announced that North Granby's Allyson McIntosh would be taking over the reins as manager for World Baseball Classic 55. She was not the most decorated manager in the country based on wins and trophies, but what she has always thrived in, is the ability to put together a winner and make players perform to the best of their abilities. She turned around the entire North Granby organization and therefore, CAB hoped that she could do the same with the international program, and it also suggested that they knew that it might take a few Classics to get the team back to where it should be. Playing the entire Classic in Drawkland, we saw the team come together much like it was imagined, but a little quicker than some thought it would be. The team played well, found themselves in a tie for the group lead, but it was more than enough to make the playoffs. Once there, they went on a run, making it all the way to the semifinals, eliminating some very good teams along the way. Eventually, they finished third, and those who made the trip to Sonnel to support the team had longer than expected stays, but as long as their bosses approved their paid leave, it would be well worth it. Even if they had to find a new job after, it was likely still worth it.

Cassadaigua baseball is back! Since then, there has been so much anticipation about the 56th Classic within the country. The average attendance at CSL games increased and everyone expects greater things at the Classic. The fans, however, would need to wait a little longer to celebrate with their team when the schedule was announced. With the first six games all being road contests, the home opener was pushed back, but that would just make for a greater celebration once the day finally came. That spring time energy where everything is fresh and new was in the air at the Dagan Airways Stadium. I don't know how anything could come in the way of making this opening game and opening series be one that our fans will remember for all the right reasons.

Gates opened at 7am for the game with "Breakfast at the stadium", and as the early morning hours ticked away, well known national celebrities made appearances and signed autographs. Other baseball players within the CSL, those that are good but not quite good enough to be on the national team were also there, and that was a big hit with the kids for sure. Ten year old Maddie Brogan told me, "I thought it was silly that we were coming to the stadium so early but then it was like oh my God, my idols are here. Like, I mean I love how we can watch some of the great people but so many people are here and look at all these autographs I got! I even have Brattleboro and New Lakeland people here. I mean I hate them when we play them but today it's like, I love them so much!" Her mother, Jackie went on to say, "I didn't tell Maddie to expect. First, I told her we were just going to go out for breakfast but she was confused why I had her wear her Natalia Gomez jersey. She was really in awe with all of the people that were here from the CSL. It truly is a great celebration of Cassadagan baseball! She doesn't even know about the noon concert yet!" That, of course, was a two hour spectacle in the fan fair zone featuring many well known singers and bands in Cassadaigua, including the likes of Taylor Lowe, Marlie C, and The Agitated were on hand.

No longer did the banners at the stadium, which celebrated World Baseball Classic success of the past seem to be a memory. A third place finish, for CAB's standard, does not warrant a banner, but there was plenty of memorabilia that one could buy to celebrate and remember that feat, even if it might have just been a marketing grab. "In Cassadaigua, I know, third place doesn't really matter to us," said Hannah Greene, who made the trip north from Brattleboro, "but I went to Sonnel for a while. I know how special that is. There is such a vibrancy about that and we are ready to watch our team reclaim their spot as a top program in the world. The Drawkland Road Trip was just the first highway that we are taking to get to our final destination. We have more miles to travel now and I think we're going to be back on the map. So, why not celebrate a little bit from finishing third. No one expected it and now we can build on it!"

As time ticked away, game time got closer, and fans could watch their heroes take batting practice, taking pictures whenever possible and hoping the bombs that the batters were hitting then would translate into the game. With a little less interest, they'd watch the Outliers of Chromatika also take their batting practice, hoping that the long balls that they were hitting would all come now and not when the game starts. The Outliers were indeed one of the teams that the Fillies knocked off the road in Drawkland, and with a new manager leading the way, they would certainly be plenty motivated to at least win two out of three in Concord Heights. Would Alisen Moyamoto, Makenna Anglin's teammate with the Chromia Comets, stepping down from the player-manager role better serve their program? For Cassadagan fans, no one really cared about that. This was our moment, our time to celebrate the fact that Cassadagan baseball was back as an elite program. And there could be nothing that could spoil that.

Nothing at all.

Right?!

Damn you, Chromatika, Damn you! I hope you're happy!

[Nova Anglicana]

Just Missed: Up-and-comers you might see in the next World Baseball Classic

The Nova Anglican national team for World Baseball Classic 56 saw just four new players: Ryan Montgomery, Xavier Pineault, Sean Wilson, and Andy Hudson. With talent abounding in the NABL, it's clear there were more than four contenders for those spots, and even more spots might have been open had Charlie Snyder decided to drop more veterans. In this series, we'll take a look at some of the players who "just missed" a spot on the national team.

Part 1: Brent Lee

The Nova Anglican national baseball team has traditionally carried five starters and then another player who can throw multiple innings (long relief) or replace an injured or tired rotation member for a turn or two through the rotation (spot start). Starting with Clark Boone way back in WBC 27, that role has traditionally gone to a southpaw. This time around, it was the big-bodied, even-keeled Ryan Montgomery, whose strength lies not in one outstanding pitch but his mix of pitches as well as his makeup. The role requires someone who can handle not pitching for multiple days, then be called on to pitch 2-4 innings in blowout losses, then turn around and give the squad 5-7 solid innings as a starter. It's a physical and psychological test. This year, one of the other contenders for the role was Brent Lee.

Brent Lee was an unremarkable baseball prospect during his four years at Memorial University in Londinium. He bounced between short and long relief, with a few starts mixed in each season. His 6'7 frame meant he probably could have played basketball if he wanted to, and indeed, he was a multi-year starter for his high school team, but baseball was his first love. His university manager, Mike Davis, remembers him as a hard worker and a team player: "Brent was the kind of guy you could ask to do anything on the mound. I used him to get one out against the biggest lefty slugger around in a tough situation and to be a bridge for an inning to our setup guy and closer. He once tossed five shutout innings after our starter was knocked out of the box in the first inning, and he gave us six good innings in a key late-season game as a starter. He could do anything, and he played with a passion."

Passion for the game was big for Brent, and he showed it on the mound, visibly reacting with emotions when things went well or ill. He was capable of stretches of brilliance and times when he'd let one mistake spiral. His inconsistent performances and concerns about his emotions led him to be drafted with the third-to-last pick overall after his senior season. The talent was there, but could he handle everything? It wasn't long before teammates saw his passion, talent, and volatility: he followed a string of seven straight short-relief appearances in which he gave up at least one run with seven one-hit innings after a rash of injuries meant he needed to make an emergency start. Lee spent six years in the minors with three different organisations, alternately flashing his Swiss-army knife abilities on the mound and letting his emotions get the best of him. He finally latched on with the Isca Town Greens, who were desperate for pitching depth and traditionally one of the weaker franchises in the league since their expansion debut.

In his seventh year in professional baseball, Lee turned in a versatile, if relatively unimpressive major league debut. He appeared in 45 games, tossing 90.1 innings with a 4.09 ERA, picking up four saves and four starts along the way. The Greens weren't really any good that year, but Lee was useful in soaking up innings and appearing in various situations. That earned him a spot on the roster for the next year, again in a bullpen/swingman role. However, after two starters went down early in the season, the club turned to Lee as a guy with starting experience who at least wouldn't embarrass himself out there. Then Lee turned in a season for the ages. Over the next 11 starts, Lee pitched his way to a 2.45 ERA, keeping the Greens in many games despite their moribund offense. He worked his way to a mid-season All-Star invite, quite a change for a 30-year old who was never named to any kind of all-star team in university or the minor leagues. He faltered somewhat in the second half, but remained in the starting rotation, notching over 110 innings for the season and an ERA just over 3, while striking out a healthy 20.4% of all batters faced.

When time came around for Charlie Snyder to pick a new swingman for the national team, Lee's name came up. Perhaps he was an emerging superstar who had been underlooked, or maybe it was a nice way to reward a 30-year old for an outstanding season, or maybe Snyder and pitching coach Daniel Egan could unlock some pitch-shape or design potential that could turn Lee into a legitimate weapon for international play. But what if he were a flash in the pan, the product of a fluky season and nothing more? In the end, Snyder seriously considered Lee for the role, believing in him as a test case for the player development strategy that he planned to implement. But Lee's emotional instability and age proved to be the deciding factor. Even during his successful season, Lee had problematic blowups. Would he be able to handle the international stage? Snyder decided to go with rookie starter Ryan Montgomery, whose equanimity on the mound and six-year youth advantage over Lee meant that he was a player with more potential going forward.

Ultimately, Lee probably won't be considered for WBC 57, given his age. But he certainly has the potential to succeed in the NABL and earn himself a big paycheck. But he'll first have to prove that he isn't a fluke, easier said than done when playing for a team short on other talents like Isca Town.

Rotation
Joshua Rouillard (2-0) 15 IP, 1.80 ERA
Caleb Sherman (2-0) 15 IP, 0.60 ERA
Nate Barrett (1-0) 6 IP, 4.50 ERA
Tommy Logan (0-0) 7 IP, 1.29 ERA
Félix Clermont (0-1) 12.1 IP, 5.11 ERA

Bullpen

Ryan Montgomery (0-0), 2 IP, 0.00 ERA
Darren Sharp (0-0) 3 IP, 0.00 ERA, 3 S
Steven Gray (0-0) 1.1 IP, 6.75 ERA
Sean Caldwell (1-0) 7 IP, 1.29 ERA
Simon Steele (0-0), 1.2 IP, 21.60 ERA
Jean-Michel Lefebvre (0-0), 2 IP, 9.00 ERA
Tom Tyler (0-0), 2.2 IP, 10.13 ERA
Adrien Dumas (0-0), 3 IP, 3.00 ERA, 1 S
Brandon Norris (0-2), 2.2 IP, 6.75 ERA

[Abanhfleft]

MUSINGS OF AN ARMORED DINNER JACKET
Official blog of Ibrahim Ahmadinejad, former Right Fielder of the Verbergerkinnh Cubs and the Abanhfleft Revolution

WE SHOULDN'T HAVE SURVIVED THAT BUT WE DID, SOMEHOW

WRITING FROM COLENARIO, KO-OREN - So we’ve managed to survive the Dragonflies of Ko-oren. And by survive, I do mean survive because we managed to win our three-game series against these guys 2-1. I know! Incredible, right? I never thought we would get a single win against them, let alone two, but then again maybe that’s just the fact that Ko-oren have bested us before and I’m not really used to seeing us on the giving end of an ass-whooping to the team in blue, yellow, and green. Then again, is it really fair to call a 2-1 series victory an ass-whooping? On the face of it, nobody really got their ass whooped, although once again we have a very noteworthy Game 2 in this particular series, if only for the fact that this might be the first time that I’ve seen the Abanhfleft Revolution put up a double digit score against an opponent, any opponent, let alone bloody Ko-oren. I don’t know if I should call double-digit scores in baseball a rarity, but I can definitely say that in my whole career, I’ve only seen it happen a handful of times. So believe me when I say that my mouth was hanging open when Cedric Colon made the final out of the night during the second game and it had ended 13-6 in our favor.

At the time that Game 1 of our series against Ko-oren started at The Citadel in Santa Teresa, this series really was a fight for the top of the group. It’s kind of strange to say when you think that we have the bloody defending Classic champions in the same group, but after South Newlandia had that little hiccup at the start of the Classic against our current opponents, it’s no surprise that Kurtis Lingenfelter and his boys have tried to take advantage of the situation as much as possible. The Elephants are not going to remain in third place for much longer. We all know that. If you don’t think so then you’re just deluding yourself. We gotta be a bit more realistic this time around. We all know we’re not going to be able to beat the Ellies in a long drawn out series, which is why we’re picking up as many wins as we could while we haven’t met them yet. Then again, I really did think that our run of good luck was going to run out against Ko-oren, and look at what actually happened. Maybe the time for doubting the Revolution is over. Maybe it’s time to start believing in it, slip-ups against both Imperial Haiti and Aust Scor notwithstanding.

But things weren’t so rosy for us after the end of Game 1 against Ko-oren though. Maybe the boys had gotten a little too overconfident with themselves after they swept Aust Scor in the previous series and they thought that Ko-oren would roll over in a similar fashion. They must have forgotten that it was bloody Ko-oren that they were playing next, and that they were playing them in Dragonflies territory. That would probably explain how and why Ko-oren managed to drop four runs on us just in the second inning, and even though it wasn’t from a grand slam, seeing that must have made our team’s confidence plummet to rock bottom. And you can’t really fault either set of players for it. Maisorenten and Bennett were just doing their jobs, which was to score runs for their team, and they did that with a pair of RBIs between each other. Meanwhile, our boys were not really able to do their jobs, which was to prevent the other side from scoring runs, but that didn’t stop Aedan Soto from trying to catch the ball until it was actually physically impossible for him to do so.

I mean, we did try to get back into the game, and we almost managed to do so in the third inning. Booker Draves was on second base waiting for someone to advance him, and both Elbert Freeman (no DH for us again according to Ko-oren’s rules so sorry to Antonio Myles once again) and Gio Perkinson had already struck out, so now everything was on Cedric Colon’s shoulders. Not particularly wide shoulders, what Cedie has, but he still managed to find a way to draw exceptional strength from those shoulders (and the core; we can’t forget about the core) to punt the ball all the way up center field to give Booker a clear run back to home plate to get that comeback ball rolling. Cedie himself managed to get himself to second base thanks to that monster hit of his, and now it was his turn to wait for somebody to help him back home. Good thing he had Ben Anderson after him in the order, right? We don’t get to see it too often, but when the two of them are on the same page, Cedie and Benny are both capable of making some magic happen. I mean, you would certainly call Ben Anderson sending the ball into center field in almost the same way that Cedie Colon did, allowing the second baseman to score Abanhfleft’s second run of the game.

Except it didn’t really turn out that way. After that initial two-run burst in the third inning, Ko-oren managed to shut us up for the rest of the day while at the same time adding a couple of runs to their own score. We did get the last word in though with Antonio Myles (coming in as a pinch runner for Booker Draves though and not as a DH) getting an RBI with Donald Edwards at the top of the ninth inning, but obviously it wasn’t enough to overturn our deficit. Advantage Dragonflies, and there were still two more games left to play. Also, unlike us, they have a whole bunch of stadiums in which to host their opponents, and you all know what that means: road trip! Technically speaking, that is. I don’t know if you can get to all of these stadiums by road or if there’s a quicker way like trains or planes. In any case, the Abanhfleft Revolution and its fans were headed to Ferrovente for Game 2, and though there were definitely those who were not looking forward to this next meeting with the Dragonflies, most of us were still cautiously optimistic. The hosts may have beaten us, but there were a lot of encouraging signs that showed that a little bit more luck our way could have given us this game instead.

Well, what do you know? Ko-oren managed to take the lead in Game 2 as well. To be fair, while a three-run lead is only one better than four, at least this time the Dragonflies had the decency of spreading it out over two innings instead of hitting them all in the same inning. Pijpenbroek got an RBI from Fouquet to start off the second inning of Game 2 before Caamano also helped Pijpenbroek get back home, and then Ritsushima added to that in the third inning after he was batted in by Fouquet. So far, it looked like Ko-oren was going to walk away with the series win, as at this point it really didn’t look like we were going to be able to scrape up even just a consolation win against the Dragonflies on their own turf. Not even a home run from Giovanni Perkinson looked like it was going to be enough to dig us out of this hole because Ko-oren were just so damn good at catching balls when other teams would have just let them bounce. And then you add to that the fact that they just scored yet another run in response to Gio’s homer and it really did look like this was not going to be our day once again. Optimism could only get this team so far, apparently, and some fans were already making their way out of the stadium once we had crossed the halfway point of the game itself. That might have been the biggest mistake that those fans had ever made, second only to choosing to support Abanhfleft in the first place.

Those fans who had made their way out of the Ventovente before the start of the sixth inning would eventually come to regret their decision as they had walked out just when Kurtis Lingenfelter and his boys realized that there was still time to win the game and keep ourselves ahead of South Newlandia in the group, even if just for a few more days. I can’t really tell what exactly it was that changed in this team between the fifth and sixth innings, but whatever it was, it was the right decision to make because it set the stage not only for one of Abanhfleft’s biggest comebacks in baseball but also set the stage for the making of some history. And once again, it started with the tandem of Cedric Colon and Ben Anderson. We didn’t get any flashy home runs from either one of these guys this time around though; they just got some good hits and got themselves on base without too much of a fuss. Ainsley Malone struck out, as you would expect a non-specialist pitcher would do, but then you have Maël Corneau getting a hit of his own to load the bases. Now you would think that we were setting up the stage for yet another one of our grand slams, but not really. It did feel like it was going to be one when Donald Edwards unleashed a whopper of a hit on that fastball pitch from the Ko-oren reliever, but even though the ball fell in between left field and third base, it was still enough for two RBIs to Don’s name.

And it turned out that that was just the start of the chaos, of the excitement, of the improbable. Aedan Soto’s hit batted in Corneau, who had ended up in third base in the aftermath of Don Edwards’ double RBI. Corneau’s run was the one that tied the game for the Revolution, and once we realized that it was actually possible to come back against Ko-oren and maybe even snatch the game win from them, the lads immediately got to work doing just that. But it would seem as if Booker Draves missed that particular memo because he struck out in short order when it was his turn to bat, leaving both Edwards and Soto at risk of being left stranded out there. Good thing for them (and for us) that Elbert Freeman was there to save the day by knocking the ball out of the park (not literally, although it did come close with the way that the stands were built here in Ventovente). Nevertheless, it was still enough for Elbert to get the home run, and he also had the added benefit of two more RBIs to his name. Gio Perkinson may have struck out afterwards, but the Fleftic comeback was well and truly on. Ben Anderson’s run in the seventh inning (helped along by Maël Corneau) might have seemed like the cherry on top, but as we were about to see, we were about to get another scoop of ice cream on top of this sundae as well.

Booker Draves and Elbert Freeman started the eighth inning with a couple of hits, and Booker actually decided that now was a good time for him to try to steal third base during Gio Perkinson’s at-bat, and the madman actually managed to do it. Thus it wasn’t really a surprise when Booker scored yet another run to keep pumping the Revolution’s lead up even further, although it did come at the cost of Gio going out on a pop-out. Not that we should have been worried though as once again that tandem of Colon and Anderson went out there and did their jobs, and Benny boy even got credited with an RBI once Elbert had touched home yet again. Now it was Mladen Manevski’s turn to get this duo over the line, and he actually did it, the absolute madman. You wouldn’t expect a setup pitcher to be able to get a hit powerful enough to send not just one man but two across home plate, but that’s exactly what Mladen did. And he looked so calm and unperturbed while doing it, like it was just another day at the office for him, which it probably is to be fair to him. Not even when it was his turn to touch home did Mladen show any hint of emotion during his time out there on the field, and that was probably exactly how it wanted it to be. He’s a “no fuss, no frills” kind of guy, Mladen Manevski. Must be those Bulgarian genes.

So yeah, that’s the story of how the Abanhfleft managed to score in the double digits for possibly the first time ever in its history in the World Baseball Classic. I genuinely cannot recall another time where we managed to do that, but if there’s anyone out there who knows the reality, feel free to correct me. Anyway, Abanhfleft had turned a 4-1 deficit into a 13-4 advantage in the span of four innings. I’m actually impressed with that, not gonna lie! Again, why couldn’t the Revolution have been able to do this when I was still playing for them? I’m really ruing all of the times that we bottled it against all sorts of opponents during my time. Imagine where the Revolution could have been if we were already playing like this back then. Maybe we would have already had a Classic or two under our belts by now? Oh, well. No use crying over spilled milk now. And I’ve got my own International Baseball Slam trophy so why am I even moaning in the first place? The fact that I wish I’ve also got a Classic in my trophy case, that’s what. But enough about me. I’m not in the Revolution anymore so let’s talk about the guys who are actually in there in the first place. So after that explosion of runs in the final third of the game or so, the Revolution got Game 2 in the bag and equalized the series, meaning that everything was now on the line come our visit to the Colenario Municipal Stadium. Whoever wins that game wins the series as well, and if it’s us, we maintain our grip on top of Group A for a few more days. Like I said, South Newlandia aren’t going to remain in third or even second for much longer, so the Revolution should take advantage of the situation while it could.

Game 3 of our away series against Ko-oren was nowhere near as exciting as Game 2 was, but then again, I don’t think there will ever be a game involving us that will come close. The pace of Game 3 was a bit more sedate; there were no big home runs and such to be found here. It was more of a matter of doing what needed to be done to finish the job; nothing more and nothing less. The Dragonflies still took the lead first, but the response from the Revolution was once again swift and immediate, and once we did have the lead we didn’t relinquish it anymore, no matter how hard Ko-oren tried in the seventh inning. Indeed, after the seventh inning of Game 3, nothing much else of note happened, and in the end Abanhfleft cruised to another series victory. But to say that it was easy would just be lying, plain and simple. There was nothing easy about any of the games that we had to play against Ko-oren. Heck, playing against Ko-oren itself was never easy, and we really should consider ourselves fortunate and lucky that we went away from their archipelago with two wins in the bag. And considering the fact that South Newlandia just tore Aust Scor a new one and are now breathing down our necks, this series victory has now become even more important in context.

Speaking of South Newlandia, we won’t be able to face them until after we’ve dealt with Qasden. Now on first glance it would seem like this is going to be a walk in the park because we’ve got another unranked team in our hands. But unlike either one of Imperial Haiti or Aust Scor, we actually know a lot about Qasden, and we know that they’re here to stay. They may be unranked right now, but those Vans are going to give us a proper fight. They may have dropped off from their glory days near the start of their entry into the multiverse of sports, but at the end of the day, they’re still competitors, and we’ve got to treat them accordingly. They most certainly will not roll over for us at the end of the day, so it’s up to Kurtis Lingenfelter and company to force the Vans on their backs. This is of course complicated by the fact that we’ve also got South Newlandia up next after Qasden, and the Elephants are currently tied with us on both games won and run difference. We can talk about avenging our Round of 16 loss to the Ellies later, but right now our focus is on Qasden, the Vans, and how to beat them. This is the Armored Dinner Jacket saying ciao, peace. Catch you in my next post.

[Milk Island]

Welcome to AM 1080 Milk Island Sports radio today we've got game 1 of Series 3 for WBC 56 Where our Milk Island Pandas are Playing the Milchama Swords Here we are first inning... Beautifully pitched inning by both starters 2ND inning here Milchama hitting and great hit by Holny... Bases loaded two outs Now batting Bayta Jones Bases loaded 2 outs He hits a fly ball deep right field and it is gonnnnnn Caught! He robs the home run! GREAT CATCH BY PUIG... Bottom of the third.... Now batting Pitcher Neta Rothsenns He hits a deep fly ball and its gone HOME RUN... to the top of the ninth 2 outs 1-0 Swords Tenli Food pitching trying to close the game out against hitter Pete Luck and 2 fastballs in a row for strikes Pandas down to their last strike and he throws the curveball STRIKEOUT Swords win Pandas move down to 2nd in Group G and Swords stay in last! See you later for Game 2 on AM 1080 Milk Island sports radio!

"Wait a second!"

"What?"

"They called us the Swords!!!"

"Yeah can't they read a roster post?!"

"Like we're the Warriors"

"And it's only mentioned in the roster post like 16 times"

"And I think they read it because they put in

"For christ sake know some Hebrew children, we're War in Hebrew of course we're the Warriors"

"Who the f--- are the Swords? What kind of dumbass nickname is that?"

"It's almost as bad as Pandas"

"Yeah what a terrible nickname"

"They're probably fictional, all they do is sleep all day, and they eat a stupid tree"

"Pandas don't even want to have sex, all they want to do is eat the stupid tree"

"Also, they're name is Milk Island, clearly the correct nickname is the Almonds, Soy Boys, or Cows"

"Cows have the same aesthetic as pandas black and white but only one of them can be tipped for fun"

"True it's much better! Also cows produce milk which is useful and don't eat stupid trees"

"Nope cows just look kinda stupid all day"

"But when you compare that to a panda it's much better"

"Definitely"

"I also just figured out that panda's might be bad at milk anyways https://royalsociety.org/news/2015/10/complex-composition-of-panda-mothers-milk/"

"Interesting"

"So what in the bleeding hell is swords?"

"I have no idea but kids these days really need to learn how to read"

"And maybe take a history lesson or two"

"Yeah learn about Margaret you young'uns"

"Ugh"

"The worst"

Sorry that you suck at typing and i couldn't see your team's name with that feminine --- Font

[Audioslavia]

Sorry that you suck at typing and i couldn't see your team's name with that feminine --- Font

It's okay you can say ass here.

Milchama's post blurs In Character (opinions held by characters) with Out of Character (opinions held by the user) a lot. It's unlikely that he's trying to offend you. Snarky roleplays about missed or incorrect information aren't common on NS Sport, but they've always been a part of it.

Nevertheless, I'm sure you appreciate that your response was wildly inappropriate..

Please consider this a caution that you should try other avenues - telegramming the user in question or the host, for example - if you're annoyed about someone else's RP in the future

[Ko-oren]

KOR North Season 4 Previews - Llamaphant Pro Baseball

Echizen Dragons @ Uvesaki Field (24390), Echizen, Alara
Alara, the Garden Island, sees baseball as an important pastime (that maybe takes up a bit too much green space). Small field dimensions (and sea-level conditions) give a small advantage to batters. Beyond the fence, it's all picnic places. Along the foul lines and behind the plate, it's all stands.
This is your club if you like to see a team do a lot with a small budget in beautiful surroundings.
Prediction: Overall: 3 // Pitching: 4 / Fielding&Batting: 2 // Infield: 2 / Outfield: 11 / Starting pitchers: 1 / Bullpen: 6
Coaching Staff: Raymond McFadden (54) TKT
Fielding: C: Tevi Kagulazaka (35y)★★★★ - Infield: Ré Fouquet (36y)★★★, Len Pijpenbroek (28y)★★★★✩, Leo Jimenez SNL (22y)★★★, Kenkichi Takata (34y)★★✩ - Outfield: Yoshihito Oshita (29y)★★★, Rosie (f) Ayslynn (20y)★★, Ruu Deguchi (33y)★★ / DH: Hildegrim de Waard (19y)★★
Pitching: Starters: Grady Good SNL (24y)★★★★, Molovisa Gotou (31y)★★★✩, Mochiyoshi Doi (31y)★★✩, Jay Kramer SNL (29y)★★★, Maddison ""Missy"" Jembembe TJU (22y)★★★✩ - Relievers: Daki Chuan SHERPA (29y)★★✩, Hidemichi Makino (27y)★★✩, Yuriko (f) Hinouchi (22y)★★, Kazushi Watase (28y)★★★, Nolisuke Minagawa (31y)★★ - Closer: Benoit Everson QUE (29y)★★✩
Last season: 106-78, 1st in the North/2nd in the Conference, 3-0 over the Generals in the Divisional Series, 4-1 loss to Santa Teresa Stars in Conference Series.

The Dragons came into the LPB and immediately made themselves at home. The upswing they enjoyed in the later domestic years neatly translated into a running start in the LPB, in a division of unproven commodities and rebuilds. Teragaseki was seen as the original threat, but Furune have clearly done more in less time as the ex-Suvira Quarry 'expansion' team, and Arakura need not apply for a while. Last season they were the conference-wide 2nd team in the predictions, then won their division and came second overall by losing the Ko-orenite conference series to Santa Teresa. It looks like Echizen could once again take on a team from the West in a conference game, because the hierarchy hasn't changed that much from last year. The Dragons enter this season with one of the best rosters in the conference, between their infield of stars, returning NT Fouquet and Pijpenbroek as well as an aging - and to be replaced with something even better - Takata. At third base, to replace the retired Tsugahara Takata (brother to), it's Jimenez as a long term option. They'll have to do a lot to mask the outfield, with young Rosie Ayslynn, veteran Deguchi, and the one teammember we can see holding on for a while, Oshita.

In the draft, the Dragons picked up TJUN-ian Jembembe, third baseman Jimenez, and with the second-to-last pick they also got Daki Chuan - in 36 picks, our teams picked up 19 pitchers in total - so the Dragons helped the average up. They weren't the biggest positions of need but it certainly helped bolster their strengths without letting their bad sides get out of control.

The pitching situation is better than any other team. Good is a top 5 pitcher in the league, Gotou and Missy should both be somewhere in the top 15, and that leaves Kramer as - well - kind of still a pitcher that could make any team immediately better. You could say he's better than anything currently starting for the Giants or the Originals. Doi is the only questionable member of this five-headed monster of doom (you know, like a Dragon) but his wide arsenal - control and pace be damned - still make him a worthwile guy under contract. The bullpen is a large collection of average talent, but with little to no below average talent - can't beat that. Age-wise, the team is looking pretty solid, with few over 30s, and if rosters were allowed to be a little bigger, they'd surely have some early 20 somethings lying around as well - they don't have a lot of those as it stands. A true win-now roster.

Furune Bees @ Obsidian Hive (22400), Furune, Selesi
Furune, on Selesi, the Tropical Island, is a city known for its academic and ecological tradition. The Bees are run as eco-friendly as possible, and that includes transport to and from the stadium. The Bees are an expansion team that inherits the full Suvira roster.
This is your club if you want to support a team from its very beginning in a lush and green location.
Prediction: Overall: 6 // Pitching: 9 / Fielding&Batting: 4 // Infield: 4 / Outfield: 7 / Starting pitchers: 9 / Bullpen: 8
Coaching Staff: Diego Lowe (45) SNL
Fielding: C: Roland Harlow BOL (32y)★★★✩ - Infield: Noriatsu Togashi (28y)★★, Devon Jimenez SLL (33y)★★★★, Henrique Toca (38y)★★★, Géa (f) Reille CMT (24y)★★★✩ - Outfield: Justin Tucker SLL (23y)★★★, Jasuviko Kaneshiro (28y)★✩, Umeko (f) Ōbali (22y)★★ / DH: Kazuyo (f) Yokoi (19y)★★★
Pitching: Starters: Suno Matsuda (31y)★★★✩, Tojoaki Jabe (32y)★★✩, Kimi Holvanen TJU (24y)★★★✩, Kama Vokama (34y)★✩, Arthfael yCwmols (28y)★★ - Relievers: Michikiyo Togawa (27y)★✩, Yukiari Chousokabe (29y)★★, Eisuke Fukuhara (23y)★★✩, Takuya Adachi (20y)★★★, Koyo Igarashi (30y)★★★ - Closer: Mauja Wijnberg (27y)★✩
Last season: 91-93, 3rd in the North/7th in the Conference.

The newly formed Furune Bees took the year to find an identity and pick which areas to improve over the next few years. Under new head coach Diego Lowe, who liked the challenge and ran with it, they turned into a middle-of-the-road team with a few upsides. They already were decent in fielding/batting, particularly in the infield, and had few special things going on for itself outside of that, so the assignment for the draft was simply to find the biggest value at each pick that made sense with the holes in the roster. They picked TJUN-ian Kimi Holvanen with the sixth overall pick, a pitcher, and then got Super-Llamalander Justin Tucker for their outfield troubles in the second, and then added VERY young designated hitter Yokoi in round three.

The DH rule is one that keeps stumping Ko-orenite teams and by making it a separate position from the outfield helps them to specifically train for the skills involved. Yokoi already counts as one of the better DHs in the conference, but that's more that the Bees have named a designated, designated hitter whereas most still relegated their fourth best outfielder to the position. Looking at the Bees after the draft, some areas come out better than others. In a country that still suffers from a minor pitching shortage, a look at the bullpen suggests it's not great but comparing it to the rest of the conference they're not doing so bad with Fukuhara, Adachi, and Igarashi - the latter active for the NT for a long time now. Bollonich catcher Harlow, SLL veteran Jimenez, greybeard Toca, and Chromatikan Reille make for a fearsome infield. Tucker is the leader of an unspectacular outfield. The starting pitchers, particularly with Matsuda (NT) and Holvanen, are a very up and down unit that covers for holes like Vokama and yCwmols (never trust a Mawr in baseball folks, they play spin bowler in cricket). They have a lot of tall pitchers with stamina for days, so they might leave their guys on for more pitches than most - hopefully they can take more from the stars so Vokama and yCwmols can use their limited arsenals in the spots that matter.

Arakura Knights @ Ginofruit Field (28000), Arakura, Selesi
Arakura, on Selesi, the Tropical Island, is a blue-collar port town. Knowing how similar Aonishi lost its team, Arakura - and other Yoshiman port towns - rallied behind the team. They're the best supported team on the island and a neutral's favourite. The on-field product need not apply.
This is your club if you have fuzzy feelings towards very well supported, blue-collar clubs.
Prediction: Overall: 9 // Pitching: 7 / Fielding&Batting: 11 // Infield: 12 / Outfield: 2 / Starting pitchers: 2 / Bullpen: 12
Coaching Staff: Daisuke Yamaguchi (68) KOR
Fielding: C: Tricia (f) Moreno SLL (36y)★★★ - Infield: Ben Descombes (35y)★★, Kishō Kurahashi (19y)★★✩, Papa Girard (34y)★✩, Hidemichi Chiura (33y)★★ - Outfield: Hiroharu Akiba (30y)★★★✩, Harper Yumizuka DRC (31y)★★★✩, Kenko Ueda (29y)★★ / DH: Nalivalu Amakusa (30y)★★★
Pitching: Starters: Yurika (f) Ōhashi (19y)★★★✩, Nam-Soo Baek QUE (26y)★★★★, Devon Ackie QUE (27y)★★✩, Basil Carreiro (24y)★★✩, Teno Mochizuki (32y)★★✩ - Relievers: Guust Blauwbroek (37y)★✩, Naganoli Tao (25y)★★✩, Marcelo Lamas (26y)★★, Yoson Kuroda (26y)★✩, Ami (f) Amaja (22y)★✩ - Closer: Varunobu Ozawa (33y)★★✩
Last season: 88-96, 4th in the North/8th in the Conference.

As it turned out, the North was a pretty strong division. Where the West has two overpowered teams and the South couldn't figure itself out for a while, the North had four fairly strong teams, and Arakura were the unlucky ones to finish last - in any other division, they would have settled between #2 and #3. It did highlight a few things for the Selesi island club: as expected, they were way off Echizen's level, and as they really hoped to avoid, they were worse than the other Selesi club - the newly founded Furune Bees. Losing the island battle lit a fire under them, and with experienced local coach Yamaguchi they're here to try to be even more competitive in a division that's once again looking like the strongest in Ko-orenite baseball.

Picking earlier than their record suggests, they got Quebecois pitcher Nam-Soo Baek with the fifth overall pick. Inactive in trades saw them just get their regular three draft picks, and they got pitcher Ohashi with their second rounder, just after the Chromatik pick that the Giants gave away. With the last pick, they got another pitcher, Devon Ackie, from Quebec. Loaded with two Quebecois and hoping that they could help each other settle into the small-ish port town (as the 2nd smallest town in the conference after Desierto), it's clear where they expect their revenge to come from: awesome pitching, mid-tier batting, and awful fielding, with poor durability given their mediocre bullpen. The Knights have a lot of holes, even after the draft.

Some upsides: catcher Moreno is looking good, as are Akiba and Yumizuka in the outfield, with experienced and above-average DH Amakusa to back them up. The start of their pitching rotation is unmatched in the league, though young. But Ackie, Carreiro, and Mochizuki will have to do something to impress the locals, and the bullpen, put together with most young cheap talent or old cheap free agents, is a poorly duct taped unit. We expect the Knights to jump out to leads and then give those up by the sixth inning or so.

Teragaseki Originals @ Vidari Stadium (22301), Teragaseki, Etena
Etena, the Festival Island, loves its rituals, legends, and memorials. No team has more special days than them. There's a good sense of community, though not everyone in the stadium shows up for baseball.
This is your club if you want to see a team connect with its fanbase and its history.
Prediction: Overall: 12 // Pitching: 12 / Fielding&Batting: 10 // Infield: 9 / Outfield: 6 / Starting pitchers: 12 / Bullpen: 9
Coaching Staff: Yumi Kasai (f, 48) KOR
Fielding: C: Arimoro Sano (28y)★✩ - Infield: Theodore Easter CMT (25y)★★✩, Arata Iio (19y)★★★, Erina (f) Komiyama (19y)★★★✩, Jukichi Sakurano (34y)★★ - Outfield: Takenaga Ono (21y)★★★, Cora (f) Schwartz SNL (25y)★★✩, Xenaro Durán (31y)★★ / DH: Miles Gill CMT (23y)★★★
Pitching: Starters: Ko Nijveld (30y)★★, Jason McAllister SLL (34y)★★★, Tokuma Mulajama (25y)★★, Momo (f) Renbutsu (22y)★✩, Mava Jukimuro (33y)★✩ - Relievers: Lauren (f) Allen NWM (31y)★★✩, Bernaldo Viveiros (26y)★★, Danno Makino (28y)★★, Parevu Uvulivelu (37y)★✩, Martiño Siqueiros (25y)★★★ - Closer: Bunji Yano (37y)★✩
Last season: 97-87, 2nd in the North/5th in the Conference, 1-0 loss to Santa Teresa Stars in Wildcard Game.

The Originals were having a blast. Their rivalry with Echizen lives on, and the orange team can kickstart their LPB experience with a sold out Vidari Stadium, play some fun rivalry games, and compete for playoffs. A good enough roster - at the start of the LPB experiment at least - and a young core can get the Originals ready to take over when the Dragons start falling apart. Originally projected 9th in the conference, they finished fifth, comfortably with a wildcard in hand. What a way to start off the new era. They would go on to lose the Wildcard Game to the Stars, but the duopoly of the Western division is something else - you can lose those games. It's a competitive field and you basically just have to make sure you win your division, and the fans were ok to give the team some leeway on that. They would give away firstborns to even make the wildcard given those preseason rankings, anyway.

They picked somewhat late in the draft - the downside of success - and got three very young players. They're planning for the future, to be ready when Echizen inevitably falls off, and hey, the team's already good so they can only get better. With Komiyama and Iio they drastically change their infield, and with Ono they get some firepower in the outfield. No pitching changes for them.

But as they looked at their team again... was this really the team that could make another run for the wildcards? They really are all-in on the future. After shortshop Sakurano, the oldest is 25, followed by two 19-year olds. Komiyama was promising in the preseason, but was Iio really all that? The more they looked, the more holes they discovered. Was it worth it getting Gill at DH while they had more immediate issues at catcher? The outfield had a good Ono now, and Schwartz was going to do her job fine, but Durán? And don't get me started on the pitching. In a draft that held more pitching talent than any draft in history, they got nothing. McAllister is now the biggest name on a parade of nobodies - Nijveld, Renbutsu, Jukimuro - are they even LPB caliber? Nijveld could be a decent player for a Western League minor league team, and the other two probably wouldn't be among the best in the Leleia Triple A league. The bullpen has Allen and Siqueiros, but beyond that it's an aging mess of limited skillsets. There's some decent control among them, which doesn't help without the ranges and speeds necessary at an ever increasing LPB level. Can the Originals really fall from 5th to 12th?

[Eshialand]

Problems Everywhere, Solutions Nowhere
L'est d'Espanya 2 - 4 Eshialand
L'est d'Espanya 2 - 9 Eshialand
L'est d'Espanya 2 - 7 Eshialand

RING! RING!
RING! RING!
RING! RING!

The first moment the king gets back to his office after his week off, he's immediately bombarded by phone calls. As it turns out, work piles up on you while you're away from the office. Who knew!

However, none of this was coming to his main phone. No, all of this phone traffic was directed to his Ministry of Sport phone. Some outside of Eshialand have questioned in the past why the king is also the Minister of Sport; the simple answer is that he took a while to decide who it should be until he realized that he really enjoyed the job and that he should just keep doing it himself.

"Eenie meenie miney mo..." he picks one of the three blinking lines to pick up. "Hello?"
"Hey hey Will!" it was Marcus Blevin, the president of Baseball Eshialand!
"Hey Marcus! What's going on?"
"Nothing much, just have a quick question. We've got a team from a tinpot dictatorship called l'Est d'Espanya coming to Yancey Field, and I was just wondering whether we should get our team to wear rainbow armbands in support of pride, since the people in l'Est d'Espanya have... no LGBTQ+ rights to speak of."
"Uhhhh sure? LGBTQ+ rights are worth sparking a potential diplomatic incident I guess..."
"Thanks a ton!"

click!

Alrighty, time for line number 2. "Hello?"
"Fele'avo!" That traditional Aleiravan greeting was coming from Haulafo Paka'ula, from the Aleiravan Football Association.
"Oh hey Haulafo, how's it been?"
"Well, I only barely survived the last CAFA Cup with my job, so that's lovely..."
"Didn't you make the semifinals?"
"Yeah and if we didn't I'd be fired! Anyway, that's not why I'm calling."
"So what is it?"
"We need you to look over some potential new AFA logo ideas, since... we kinda never had one."
"Isn't that supposed to be your job?"
"Well I'm indecisive. Can you help?"
"Fine, send them over later."
"Thanks!"

click!

Okay, just one more blinking light. "Hello?"
"William, how lovely." it was Jérôme Lafontaine, commissioner of the Eshian Baseball Association.
"Oh, hi..." the king was clearly not happy to speak to Mr. Lafontaine.
"So I assume Michael has already spoken to you about the state of the EBA, right?"
"Yes, Mr. Lafontaine."
"And have you come up with any ideas to help us out?"
"No, not really... I suppose I could just send you guys enough money to run your next season, but you should really figure out how to be profitable on your own without government subsidies. After all, if you catch a man a fish, he eats for a day. If you teach a man to fish--"
"...he eats for a lifetime, yes, I know that saying. So bottom line is you'll cover the money we need to run for another year?"
"Fine, I will. But again, you're gonna need to make some serious changes if you wanna stay profitable, and I can't help you out with that. That's something you're gonna have to figure out on your own, and judging by the current state of affairs, that's not exactly going to be easy. Understood?"
"Oh course, King William. Have a wonderful rest of your day."
"I shall, Mr. Lafontaine."

click!

The king breathed an audible sigh of relief after this call. He was trying to avoid Jérôme for about half a week at this point, ever since Michael told him about the EBA's financial issues. However, after getting this call done and over with, he could feel just a bit better about that situation. Now, onto the actual work.

[Barnettsville]

BARNETTSVILLE BLUE JAYS

ST. CATHERINE - Another WBC, another attempt for Barnettsville to win their second ever championship as a country.

The lineups remain the same as WBC 55:

POS	#	Player			Bat/Throw	Age
2B	1	Arthur Rodgers		R/R		29
SS	8	Stefan Huber		R/R		29
CF	44	Zane Franklin		R/R		33
LF	20	Bobby Kramer		L/R		25
1B	3	Bert Powell		R/R		25
C	27	Willis Pittman		R/R		25
3B	10	Feliux Cortes		S/R		27
RF	56	Phillip Vinson		L/L		31
PITCHER SPOT
BENCH
C	72	Tyler-James Gonzales	R/R		24
2B	23	Connor Eastwood		R/R		25
SS	14	Brenden Meyer		R/R		27
1B	41	Scott Luna		L/R		25
IF	33	Dominick Firth		S/R		30
3B	5	Wade Rees		R/R		25
OF	9	Nick Wheeler		L/R		25
PITCHERS
SP	51	Tyler Randall		R/L		26
SP	21	Ian MacGregor		L/L		31
SP	29	Rick Benson		R/R		24
SP	31	Lester Crawford		R/R		29
SP	35	Kirk Quinn		R/R		25
BULLPEN
RP 	47	Yu Bryant		L/L		28
RP 	22	Jon-Paul Graham		R/R		28
RP	16	Melanie Kramer		S/R		27
SU	19	Kane Chandler		L/L		31
CL 	45	Theo Ford		R/R		26
BENCH STAFF			Age
MGR	6	Marcus Drummond	56
BENCH	4	Roscoe Lane	41
1B	26	Woodrow Guzman	41
3B	34	Isaac Pike	50
PITCH	2	Nathan DuPont	48
HIT	11	Vladimir Ryan	46

The schedule and pitching rotations for all games:

Schedule:
January 14: Series 1 - MILK ISLAND
Randall, MacGregor, Benson

January 16: Series 2 - @ MELBERGIA
Crawford, Quinn, Randall

January 18: Series 3 - TJUN-IA
Benson, Crawford, Quinn

January 20: Series 4 - MILCHAMA
MacGregor, Randall, Benson

extra off day

January 23: Series 5 - @ Caribbia
Crawford, Quinn, Randall 3 all

January 25: Series 6 - @ MILK ISLAND
MacGregor, Quinn, Benson

January 27: Series 7 - MELBERGIA
Crawford, Quinn, Randall

extra off day

January 30: Series 8 - @ TJUN-ia
MacGregor, Benson, Crawford

February 1: Series 9 - @ MILCHAMA
Randall, MacGregor, Crawford

February 3: Series 10 - CARRIBBIA
Quinn, Benson, Randall 5 5 5 5

DH: NO!!!
Choose my runscorers: Yes
Choose my lineup: No
Follow my Pitching Rotation: Yes
Godmod scoring events: Yes, keep it reasonable.
RP injuries to my players: If I've already mentioned.
Godmod injuries to my players: See above.
Eject my players: If it's a brawl, in equal numbers to yours. If not, make it realistic.
Godmod other events: TG me with your idea first.

[Barnettsville]

CAPITAL CITY GAZETTE

Time for the comeback

ST. CATHERINE - The series Blue Jays fans have been waiting for in this Classic has come. The Warriors of Milchama come to Riverside Stadium, and with them may come the hopes of the Blue Jays. The sky blue and black are sitting at 4-5, 2 The Warriors are at 3-6, and a decent series against Barnettsville will help their cause as well.

Ian MacGregor will pitch game one against Milchama, followed by Tyler Randall and Rick Benson. Melanie Kramer has already followed in Brianna Bruce's footsteps this Classic, becoming the first female to win in international competition for Barnettsville.

PITCHERS				APP	W-L
SP	51	Tyler Randall		2	1-0
SP	21	Ian MacGregor		1	0-1
SP	29	Rick Benson		2	1-1
SP	31	Lester Crawford		2	0-0
SP	35	Kirk Quinn		2	0-1
BULLPEN			        	APP	W-L	SV
RP 	47	Yu Bryant		1	0-1	0
RP 	22	Jon-Paul Graham       	3	0-1	0
RP	16	Melanie Kramer		1	1-0	0
SU	19	Kane Chandler		0	0-0	0
CL 	45	Theo Ford		3	0-1	2

[America But With Slightly More Hazelnuts]

It's okay you can say ass here.

ASS

Under the flickering neon sign of the Association of Squirrel Sports sat four teammates. Pitchers Brook Sprinkletwist and Juma Bronzeshiver, and infielders Luckypine "Ghost" Doodletoes and Kiana Sharpmind, had clambered up the building and set up an impromptu late night picnic at the base of the sign, sharing a little fizzy nut ale in celebration of the historic moment: America had won their first series, pulling off a comeback from 1 down against The Star Enpire.

"I'm so glad we won. I was starting to get a little anxious we were going to be the butt of the jokes for this whole tournament," admitted Brook, sipping from her nutshell cup.

"We got such a bum deal with that horrible article blaming all the losses on the relievers," sighed Juma. He smiled as Ghost leaned over and patted him on the shoulder.

"Don't worry, we don't blame you. Sportswriters are just really anal about finding someone to blame. Sport doesn't work like that. There's not always a question of moral desert. Sometimes the pitches fly, the bats swing, and the balls fall in, and at the end of the day the runs just aren't in your favor." Kiana, always the most reflective of the group, had curled her hindpaws across themselves lotus-style and was gazing up at the starry Chemekan night sky.

"Still, not a nice feeling. A big international tournament, everyone's so excited, and we're stuck at the rump end of things."

"Our luck will turn around," predicted Ghost confidently. The albino squirrel's red eyes seemed to glow in the night; little wonder he'd earned his nickname. "We not going to get left behind forever."

"Hopefully Lady Luck will rear her head sooner rather than later, then!" chuckled Juma.

"We just need to keep doing the little things right, make sure the fundament of our game is strong."

"And not trip over our own tail!"

Kiana blushed at that. The agile little red squirrel was a livewire on the bases and in the field but she'd got herself all twisted up on a double play ball against The Star Enpire, leading to some snickers from the crowd. Sensing her discomfort, Juma twitched his ears at her. "Hey, at least the backside of our batting order's coming through with some big hits!" he said encouragingly, hoping to remind her instead of her run-scoring triple that had set up the big rally for the team in game 3 of their series, ultimately leading to the win.

"I just hope Shadow is OK," murmured Brook. "He looked like he might have tweaked his posterior." The possibility of a PCL injury had been raised when their shortstop had gone down clutching his hindpaw in game 2.

"Look guys, the bottom line is, we just need to keep playing every game like we still have a shot," said Ghost determinedly.

"I believe in ASS!" cheered Juma. The others murmured their agreement and clinked their nut cups together.

"I'll drink to that!"

[South Newlandia]

Disclaimers:
* this project would not be possible without the efforts from Chromatika, Ko-oren and especially Super-Llamaland. The words and pictures on screen right now were made by me, but would not be possible without extensive background work from all of us. Please do grade accordingly.
* this RP series may, on occasion, mention numbers about your players. Feel free to ignore them if you don’t like them; but keep in mind that scoring rates are lower in the LPB, with roughly 10% fewer runs than in the MLB.

South Newlandian League

Roster Movements, Drafts, Rosters – Part 2

SNL Central

Newport Dolphins

Offseason Movements:
Llamaphant Pro Baseball is a different world. For the Dolphins, it was the season of their dreams last time; winning an LPB-record 123 games. After that, they battled through the other playoff teams of the South Newlandian league, beating the young, upstart EVU in four games, before meeting a familiar foe in the South Newlandian Championship Series in the Walstreim Stingrays. After a walk-off grand slam from the bat of Enrico Nieves-Gau won them game one, they cruised to an easy series win in five games, bringing home their second national championship in three seasons.
Of course, they weren’t done, and faced the Xingcheng Renaissance in the Esportiva Series.
Entering this season, the Dolphins would have to face the consequences of going all-in and overspending to get together one of the best rosters in club baseball history. After all, between players from Zwangzug and South Newlandia, the Dolphins employed 8 players that played in the WBC55 championship series. The era of the Dolphins getting to buy whatever they wanted was now over, with players being able to demand bigger contracts. Tasked with keeping a dozen plus elite players on their roster, the Dolphins were forced to cut deep.
On the pitching side, they lost Haakon Kalberg from Quintessence of Dust, who signed with Xingcheng, and Ben Gonzalo, one of the best Elephants in his prime, to the Ratzupalfu Rhinos, while Llamanean star reliever Y.P. Ying signed with the New Llama Wizards, his former home.
That is three stars gone, and it didn’t end there, as the Dolphins were also unable to retain their star catcher, Elephant Brad Moore, who ended up signing in St. Riecarn, and neither did they hang on the Elephants’ shortstop David Drum, who signed with the South Falls Athletics. It is worth noting that each of these five will make at least one trip to Dolphin Stadium over the coming season; for what will surely be spicy reunions.
As the Dolphins were in a position where money remained quite locked up, they had to look to get cheap deals, ideally from underrated places. Arguably, the succeeded, signing two veterans to cheap deals, namely SP Leif Best, most recently with the division rival Monarchs, and shortstop Jason Valbuena, recently with the Dragons.
More notably, the Dolphins looked to the rest of Esportiva, signing a pair of players from Ha’Yarok. The nation had been performing surprisingly well at the most recent Esportivan Baseball Trophy, taking home a bronze medal. The Dolphins gave deals to Pitcher Jael Ballin and young catcher Zane Gestetner. The latter showed off his clutch power in the Regional Tournament that people outside of South Newlandia definitely care about.

Draft: (Position: 24)
With the Chariots in possession of the Dolphins’ first round pick (thanks to a deal that added the now-departed Haakon Kalberg), the Dolphins only entered the action at the 48th-overall pick. They used it on Emilia Fuchs, a 23-year-old Newlandian right-hander who will slot into the bullpen, hopefully providing an upgrade to the depth there.

Outlook:
Coach Vincenco Goodman will have to do a lot of work to maintain the level of play of the previous season, but this is still a pretty solid all-around team without any massive, glaring weaknesses. The starting rotation, although not as good as it was, is still led by two great pitchers in Elephant Ryan Hunter and Julian Mecc-Sanders of Zwangzug; a pair of aces that can go head-to-head with just about anyone. Behind them, the depth drops off a little bit, but the Dolphins have high hopes for Ballin specifically.
The bullpen also remains very solid, with a three-reliever committee to solve the toughest issues of Quodite Benoît Beaufils, Zwangzugian Leslie Caell-Amoy and Boom Tekblam of Milchama. Here, too, are some concerns about the depth of the bullpen, but generally, they should be alright.
The infield might be the closest thing to a weak-spot on this team – Zane Gestetner, despite his great potential, still needs to prove he can be a full-time catcher on an LPB roster, and shortstop is a position of concern as well. The Dolphins have two shortstops on the roster; two experienced veterans in Bob Flowers and the newly added Valbuena. They’ll have to rely on at least one of them being good; but expecting either one to replace David Drum would be a step too far.
The place where this team still shines above all else is the outfield, with arguably the best outfield in the LPB. Chromatik star Kendra Annovar plays in Center, Llamanean Tiger Tyson Long is in left, and Quodite international Luka Chevalier is expected to start quite a few games in Right Field. There’s also Elephant Mike Larsen, who can step into right just as easily; and Chevalier can also play some of his preferred Left Field as well. Defensively, this group is definitely carried by Annovar, but there should be great offensive production from all four of these players.
Can the Dolphins repeat as Central Champions, and maybe even as National Champs as well, or will the losses prove too much to stay on top?

Newport Owls

Offseason Movements:
For a team that was hoping to compete in the previous season, the Owls’ season was cut short quite early. Losing 100 games was certainly not anything the Owls were hoping for in the third year of their Llamaphant Pro Baseball existence. Despite the poor ending, they were actually in the mix for quite a while, holding a wildcard spot at the trade deadline, but it was never enough.
Now, the Owls find themselves with a difficult to decision to make with first-year head coach Alfonso Moreira. As one of only two teams in South Newlandia to never have won a divisional or national title in the modern era of South Newlandian baseball, the little sibling of the big Dolphins is desperate for a good season. However, the roster is in absolutely no state to facilitate that. Going for a lot with all of their picks was what got them into this mess to begin with. After all, despite losing 100 games, the Owls did not have a first-rounder in this fourth LPB draft. The Owls ended up choosing to slow it down for at least a season.
That doesn’t mean that there weren’t any interesting developments ahead of the season. Former Elephant SP Larry Cain decided to retire at age 37, leaving a hole in the pitching rotation. Additionally, Chelsea Harlow, first basewoman from Newmanistan decided against re-signing with the Owls, instead moving across the pond to play for Kyrinson. Less impactfully, reliever Colhusion joined Masmow, and Llamanean backup catcher Morgan Hunter joined the Homers.
On the “additions” side, the main one was starting pitcher Todd Pearson, who played for North Cassadaigua at WBC55, and will slot into the first spot in the rotation. Other than that, there wasn’t much to write home about.

Draft: (Position: 8)
As previously mentioned, despite having the eighth-worst record in the Esportivan side of the LPB, the Owls did not have access to their first round selection, having traded it to Denison in the deal that landed them Jaden Calderón – probably not a trade they would make again. Good news – at least that pick also sent the 33rd overall back to Newport. Bad news – the Owls had also traded their second-rounder to Nikcoro, so that 33rd-overall selection was actually the only top-50 pick for the team that lost 100 games the previous season.
Tough times. The Owls ended up going with Llamanean first baseman Bradley Guo. The 21-year-old famously played for the U-11 Tigers in the International Baseball Slam as a kid, and has an impressive plate discipline and plays decent defense.
Later on, with the 56th pick, the Owls took a flyer on Newlandian Starting Pitcher Wayne Batista; a teenager with some interesting off-speed stuff.

Outlook:
It seems quite improbable for this to be a fun season for any Owls fans out there. There are some objectives – One is seeing whether Moreira, who has never actually coached a professional team before, is the right man for the job. Another is to generally see their young players develop.
The team still has a couple of decent pieces; the pitching rotation in particular is at least interesting, led by the newly added Pearson and Hannah Gray, an Eshialand international, with fan favourite Morrigan Lyall of Brenecia as a treat.
The bullpen is led by Paige Bell, although the 32-year-old from Newmanistan might not stay after the trade deadline; with young players like Cox and Batista also in the mix. In terms of depth, this is not a decent bullpen.
In the infield, things ease up a bit. The middle is locked down by two more players from Eshialand, Harry Brentwood and Kevin Dunbar, with a couple of players from Gortolekua in catcher Adrian Bautista and shortstop-turned-third baseman Veronika Santiago in the infield as well. The group is rounded out by rookie Guo.
The outfield features another player from Gortolekua in Gunvor Ready, one of the younger players of the squad at 24; alongside a gently-used Brooke Sauter in Center Field on what might be her final season. More interesting players are Right Fielder Dane Gilbert, with the Chromatik coming off an All-Star season in Xingcheng, and Newlandian Alexander Chand playing DH; the second-season player impressed with his power in his rookie season, and could be one of the players the Owls can build around.
The Owls will likely not have great this season, but they are finally trying to build something for the future. The Eshian players arguably afford them some more time than most teams have, considering they only age half as fast.


Sophie City Monarchs

Offseason Movements:
The Monarchs were very, very bad in the first three seasons of Llamaphant Pro Baseball. Having come off of a surprise championship in the very last season of the South Newlandian Baseball League, they struggled to get much of anything going. In season three, they hit rock bottom, losing more games than any other South Newlandian team for a second consecutive season, despite some improvements to the win percentage.
That’s no way for a franchise to live forever, and the good thing about a franchise-based system is that the Monarchs were “rewarded” with top picks in the Amateur draft; and thanks to trading off some pieces for further draft capital, you’ll eventually be able to assemble a decent group of young players.
Of course, it’s much harder to compete if you don’t bring in experienced talent, so that’s what the Monarchs started to do. From Cassadaigua, the team signed closing pitcher Kayla Sandlin, she will bring some much needed WBC big-nation experience into the clubhouse. The team also added a pair of players from South Americanastan, namely another reliever in Wally Quinn and Left Fielder Frank Monteforte, for some more firepower on both sides of the ball.
There were also bad news – the Monarchs lost a couple of big names in free agency, most notably among them third baseman Leo Jimenez, who, after an impressive rookie season, took a deal with the Echizen Dragons. That was definitely not the way the Monarchs wanted that first-round pick to go. Other than that, the retirement of Llamanean reliever Patrick Kenyon and Starting Pitcher Leif Best taking a deal with the Newport Dolphins were less heavy blows. Neither of them were projected a big role in this season.

Draft: (Position: 2)
Here’s where it gets really interesting. Thanks to seasons of bad results, and trading assets for future rewards, the Monarchs had three different first-round selections, among a couple later picks.
Thanks to a trade with the Felswyr Fire in which they traded away Bethany Riddle, the Monarchs had the 6th-selection in the Chromatik amateur draft, a pick they spent on 21-year-old left-hander Eddard Friend, a cerebral player out of Z'ai'ai Institute of Technology.
Of course, the one Monarchs fans were much more intimately familiar with was the second-overall pick in the LPB amateur draft; after careful consideration, the Monarchs decided on Raffaele Pohl, drafting her right out of high school. The South Newlandian already has impressive plate discipline for her age, and can play every outfield position defensively, making her a massive future asset; but it is also clear that she will need time to develop.
With their last first-round selection, 18th overall, acquired from the deal where the sent Fiona Niemi to Super-Llamaland, they went with another pitcher in Advait Kumar. The 23-year-old was projected to go later than that, but the M’s clearly fell in love with the Newlandians right-handers off-speed craftmanship in college.
In the second round, at pick 26, they went for yet another pitcher, namely Llamanean lefty Nico Harmon. At 20, he’s already showing impressive command of his pitches, and will give the Monarchs a good left-handed option.
Later, at 40th-overall (which the Monarchs had from the Cyclones from way back), the team in Lime Green added a catcher to their roster in Newlandian Vihaan Naik, with the 22-year-old having been mainly a defensive option in college, and at 50, the Monarchs took another project in 19-year-old Llamanean Tanner Haugen, a power-happy third baseman.

Outlook:
This is rapidly becoming a very interesting team. Second-season coach Phurwa Thapa will have a lot of developmental tasks on his hands, but there is all of a sudden a lot of promise on this team.
On the pitching side of things, they lack a true ace, but the depth is real if some of these rookies hit. Robert O’Connor and second-season player Gregory Shaw will provide some stability for the group of rookies, and both Lucien Ramirez and Nico Harmon have the skill and potential to escape the bullpen this season. Speaking of the bullpen, the M’s now have a three-headed committee of great relief options between Elephant Abby Conrad and the two new faces in Sandlin and Quinn.
The batting side gets a little less straight-forward. At catcher, the Monarchs will be platooning the rookie Naik and Alice Wheeler, neither of whom are particularly good, and they also rely on rookie Haugen, taken even later, being good at third base. Beside those, there’s a lot to like, with Cody Frazier of Sarzonia at first, Elephant Malika Bains at second, and Sherpa Kai Liao at shortstop, with Broughton as an additional infield depth chip.
The outfield is interesting as well. Harriet Wright and Nat McCann will likely transition into spot-starter or platoon roles, instead of consistent starting time; this will allow them both to show off their strengths when needed; their speed and outfield abilities, to be specific, while getting plate appearances in good matchups. Monteforte is likely the best player in this outfield right now, with Arthur White opposite him, with the power-hungry slugger hopefully taking a step forward in season two. The wildcard here is Raffaele Pohl, with the teenager probably planned as the Center Fielder long-term; for now, she’ll likely only get spot appearances there, and DHing some games while learning the ropes; and with her enormous potential, it makes sense that the organisation wants to her develop at the big league level as soon as possible.
The Monarchs are going to be leaving the LPB’s basement really soon, setting themselves up nicely for a future run. They still hold four first-rounders in the upcoming draft, so more reinforcements are likely on their way; if everything can go right for them, they’ll be a team to fear.
However, there is also risk; can the young players hit or will the Monarchs see busts prevent them from moving anywhere?


Rüsselsheim Blue Sox

Offseason Movements:
It was a brutal ending for the Blue Sox’ season. After winning an outstanding 111 games, they still had to host the wildcard game; and against Elephant Valley United, they came up short, cutting their national title defense short almost immediately. For a team as stacked as the Blue Sox, with a limited title window, that was a crushing result – but the team of coach Ember Marshall would have to look for a re-do, have to look into the future.
Like with most good teams this season, the Sox, too, had to deal with a number of good players signing free agency deals elsewhere. For the Sox, the biggest loss was Zwangzugian Starting Pitcher Rudolph Vocar-Dijo, who signed with the Katashi Giants; but they were also affected in the bullpen, where Justin Frazier returned to his Super-Llamaland home and signed a contract with the New Llama Cyclones.
Additionally, Rüsselsheim lost both of their corner outfielders, with Hannasean Jason Mathis retiring, and Llamanean Tiger Will Rentería signing with the other New Llama team, the Wizards.
Of course, they also signed some players in return to make up the difference. Their main source of players, this season, was a trio of players from Xanneria. Starting Pitcher Owen Tanner has a fastball with great velocity, pitching in the upper 90s, and is the player that’ll likely see the most action among the trio. Right Fielder Kyle Anderson-Hoag is still young, just 22, but there is some great potential for him out of college. His speed and defensive versatility make him a good fit here. Lastly, there’s second baseman Watts Phillipson, who’s mostly a good speedster who’ll want to steal bags.
The big signing, however, was the Rüsselsheim Blue Sox winning over Adam King, the Elephants’ long time slugger and clean-up hitter, to sign a deal with the team in blue.
In other news, the Sox finally managed to get their new stadium completed, with Rüsselsheim moving into Rüsselsheim Park, a stadium that seats about quadruple the amount of people the old one used to. This will upgrade the Sox to a stadium worthy of an LPB competitor, and opens the door to hosting international series in Rüsselsheim.

Draft: (Position: 22)
It was largely a quiet draft for the Sox. Late in the first round, they acquired the services of relief pitcher Mark Ellis, a 22-year-old Newlandian righty who’s fastball touches upper 90s. In the late second, with pick 46, they added a younger, starting pitcher prospect in Dario Bernardi, another Newlandian. Despite his small frame, he’s got a fastball with great velocity – I am starting to sense a theme here.

Outlook:
Having a comparatively quiet offseason with some good, cheap-ish additions (excluding Adam King) is definitely good news in a season where a lot of teams get shaken up. Kohnheadian coach Ember Marshall, who has been facing rumours about potential health issues in recent years, still has a good core of players.
The starting rotation is definitely missing lefty Rudolph Vocar-Dijo, but between Juzo Sakaguchi of Quintessence of Dust and now-Tiger Griffin Gonzalez, they still have a good pair of aces; while the combination of Owen Tanner, Fletcher Crouch and Mark Warren provides solid depth.
In the bullpen, Tiger Morgan Hedegaard is still controlling the closing job in what could possibly be her final season; while a similarly old Tom DiVicenzo is now second-in-command. The Hannasean has proven to be a capable player in Rüsselsheim, but behind him, the depth drops off, with the two rookies and ex-Fisher Facundo Saavedra Cicerón of Montaña Verde still yet to prove the same.
The infield is where this team really shines. Quodite international Naritoshi Tachikake catching, Adam King at first base, Chromatik star Raitis Ranta at second base, and another elite Quodite in Jack Theriault at short, there’s certainly a lot to love. Llamanean Cade Templeton will likely continue to make strides in their age-20 season after being drafted as a teenager at third base. Watts Phillipson, Tom Abbott and Jake Persson each provide their own unique qualities off the bench, with the Xannerian able to put his speed front and center, Llamanean Persson showing his defensive abilities, and Tom Abbott of Sanford most valuable as a platoon bat.
The outfield is a little shakier, but still definitely good; Kohnheadian Lucca Hahn may not be getting any younger in Center Field, but Kyle Anderson-Hoag will provide a great spark on both sides of the ball. Mac Jefferson is quietly carving out a good career for himself. Rémy Weber, the Quodite slugger, is definitely someone no pitcher wants to face, and this setup allows him to focus on hitting home runs instead of having to worry too much about defense.
The Sox have been able to mostly move laterally, and are likely going to win more than 100 games again if everything goes right for them. There are question marks, however; how long can they continue to stay on top as their core ages? Is Ember Marshall still the right man for the job? How will the team adapt to the new stadium?

[Milk Island]

Sorry that you suck at typing and i couldn't see your team's name with that feminine --- Font

It's okay you can say ass here.

Milchama's post blurs In Character (opinions held by characters) with Out of Character (opinions held by the user) a lot. It's unlikely that he's trying to offend you. Snarky roleplays about missed or incorrect information aren't common on NS Sport, but they've always been a part of it.

Nevertheless, I'm sure you appreciate that your response was wildly inappropriate..

Please consider this a caution that you should try other avenues - telegramming the user in question or the host, for example - if you're annoyed about someone else's RP in the future

I was rping