World Baseball Classic 56 Everything Thread

by **Milk Island** » Fri Jan 20, 2023 7:06 pm

(turns on game 2 on TV)
Hey game 2 is on!

Cool we're just going to lose to those dumb Swor... OOPS I MEAN WARRIORS

Lol like they should be making fun of our announcers when their last in our group

LOL

Let's go Home run! we might win this one

Great inning 2 runs!

Yeah our pitching is doing really good today!

That's just Great! we gave up 7 runs in the 4th (Shouts) TAKE OUT MURRAY

Great we lost!

at least Snowdrop did good...

Yea I guess at least right now if the season ended we would be in the playoffs and the Warriors wouldn't LOL

Lol

by **Tikariot** » Fri Jan 20, 2023 7:54 pm

Ragnar Cederholm: Do you feel ready for number seven?

Jonathan Villiers: I am--not sure...

Ragnar Cederholm: So, yes?

Jonathan Villiers: Do I really have a choice?

Ragnar Cederholm: Uh, well, technically yes.

Jonathan Villiers: (takes a deep breath) Alright, let's do this!

Ragnar Cederholm: Well, it looks pretty harmless.

Jonathan Villiers: (looks at Ragnar very suspiciously)

Ragnar Cederholm: Yes, here, look at it!

Jonathan Villiers: ...

Ragnar Cederholm: What?

Jonathan Villiers: Hell's Wrath?

Ragnar Cederholm: Hell's Wrath.

Jonathan Villiers: (sighs) OK, ok, let's do this.

Ragnar Cederholm: That's the spirit!

Jonathan Villiers: Oh my god, oh my god, oh my god! Milk! Cream! Icecream!

Ragnar Cederholm: You don't like it?

Jonathan Villiers: (with his mouth full of icecream and pointing the spoon at Ragnar in mildly threatening motion) You are trying to kill me, aren't you?

Ragnar Cederholm: Uh, no.

Jonathan Villiers: Mhm.

Ragnar Cederholm: So this one has a Cenian pepper in it, the Crimson Cascabel.

Jonathan Villiers: A beautifully deceiving name.

Ragnar Cederholm: I'll give you that.

Jonathan Villiers: And you know what? This thing was absolutely crazy hot at the beginning, but now that I've had a bit of icecream it's gone! This is interesting!

Ragnar Cederholm: It is very different from the others, yes. And even without the icecream, actually. So, to continue with our interview, other than Tikariot, what are your favourite places to go to?

Jonathan Villiers: Hm, an interesting question. I've been able to travel quite extensively thanks to baseball, so I've been able to witness quite a few places. If I'd have to narrow it down to three, I'd say Chromatika, Ceni (even though given this Crimson Cascabel business I might reconsider there) and Tumbra.

Ragnar Cederholm: Interesting, why those three?

Jonathan Villiers: It's a mix between the people, the country, the food (again, the Crimson Cascabel is not included in this).

Ragnar Cederholm: Alright, we have three more to go, onwards!

Jonathan Villiers: (sarcastic) Yay...

Ragnar Cederholm: Ooh, this one packs a punch!

Jonathan Villiers: You think so?

Ragnar Cederholm: You don't?

Jonathan Villiers: Actually no. Don't get me wrong, this is still stupid hot, but it's tasty! Is my mouth dying?

Ragnar Cederholm: (taking big sips of milk) I don't know, but you're really surprising me here! This was Sweet Death.

Jonathan Villiers: Hm. Interesting.

Ragnar Cederholm: It is made with the Cabo Azurean Dulce Muerte pepper.

Jonathan Villiers: Ah, I get it. Dulce Muerte - Sweet Death! I must say that I would definitely buy this one!

Ragnar Cederholm: Nice, happy to hear we found another one you like!

Jonathan Villiers: Yeah, I'm still not sure, if it isn't just my mouth slowly dying.

Ragnar Cederholm: Well, before we put that to the test, what does Jonathan Villiers do when he is not at the baseball diamond?

Jonathan Villiers: I like to hike with my family--

Ragnar Cederholm: Mountains or flat terrain?

Jonathan Villiers: Either. Mountains are obviously harder, but once you get to the top, the view makes it more than worth it!

Ragnar Cederholm: What else?

Jonathan Villiers: Now this is something most people don't know, I play the violin.

Ragnar Cederholm: Oh, really? Wow, I had no idea! What attracted you to the violin?

Jonathan Villiers: It can be fragile and it can be aggressive. And it just feels like you're one with the instrument.

Ragnar Cederholm: Do you play for anyone but yourself?

Jonathan Villiers: My family and some friends, but I'm not going to go public with it. No, not because I'm afraid that people wouldn't like it, but because it's something personal.

Ragnar Cederholm: Fair, fair. On to number nine?

Jonathan Villiers: After Sweet Death going down well? Sure!

Ragnar Cederholm: Alright, so here we go.

Jonathan Villiers: Oh #@$! (bangs his fist onto the table, visibly in pain) I-- (unintelligible noises as he tries to figure out if he should dare to swallow it or not)

Ragnar Cederholm: (frantically grabbing his glass of milk) Oh crap!

Jonathan Villiers: (very hard to understand as his tongue seems to be malfunctioning) You tell me! What is this thing?

Ragnar Cederholm: Demon Smile.

Ragnar Cederholm: (spooning icecream) This one is from Huayramarca, pepper is called Aji de Demonico.

Jonathan Villiers: Oh, this thing is demonic alright...

Jonathan Villiers: (still talking as if his tongue is refusing to move properly) And there's another one after this?

Ragnar Cederholm: (nods while having icecream)

Jonathan Villiers: That one will kill us.

Ragnar Cederholm: I hope not...

Jonathan Villiers: Does this mean you haven't tried it yourself yet?

Ragnar Cederholm: Nope.

Jonathan Villiers: Oh good Lord...

by **Benjium** » Fri Jan 20, 2023 8:18 pm

The transport rattled a little.

"Oppi, we're getting killed on defense."

"Hm? Odesus, we're doing fine, we just gave Super-Llamaland their first loss."

"And they gave us two. We've given up the second most runs of any team in the WBC - not just Group D, the whole WBC."

"And? 4-5 is tied for second. We only play group D. Sherpa and Llamaland are pry the best two teams in the group and we stole wins from both of them on the road."

"Well Atheara stole one from us at home. They hung 11 on us - 5 alone on Stehanus."

"Look, you're the boss. But for Cat's sake, don't change things while we're still in the fight."

"I want to bench Charlus. He's cost us too much on defense. Mika or Vinichi, but we need another solid defender."

"You can't be serious. Charlus's bat has been great all tourny!"

"A single on our end isn't worth giving up a triple Oppi. I need your support on this."

"No, Odesus you'll lose the vets if you put Charlus down."

"We're not putting him down Oppi, we're just moving his bat to a better spot, look the analytics say he's cost us 9 runs on defense."

"Damn the analytics! What do they have to do with baseball? He's only got the one error, sure he's lost a step but you can't lose his bat."

"I think Vinichi will learn quick."

"The kid's good, sure but he's not Charlus - He's done too much for the game."

"I don't need to sign him to a 5 year contract Oppi, I need to win 3 games in a row in critical series."

"You'll lose the fans- you'll lose the vets"

"Not if I'm right. This isn't just Benjium anymore"

"And what kind of message does that send? You turn the vets loose and what incentive will they have to play for us in the future?"

"What kind of message does being the worst defensive team on an international stage send? Paws, everyone thought we were gonna be a great defensive squad."

"Who cares what the internet thinks?"

"You know that's not what I'm getting at Oppi. Look, Charlus is our 4th best hitter right now. Vinichi could be our best defender in the outfield. It could let Hina relax a bit."

"I don't like it."

"Oppi, I need you're backing, not your liking."

"So you're set on this."

"Dead set. I want Vinichi to have a series and Katterimunk is the best chance to ease him in."

"Mm. I don't like it."

"Oppi-"

"But I'll back you. But you damn sure better start him a couple of games up at MCV."

"Thank you Oppi."

"Don't thank me yet, a couple of the other guys may need some convincing..."

And so for better or worse Benjium's starting Left Fielder became the 17 year old Vinichi Kujo...

by **Loyo** » Fri Jan 20, 2023 8:23 pm

Homerun for Foreign Leagues? Loyon Special Economic Zones Open for Outside Sports Media

The structure of Loyo’s media environment just changed dramatically. A recent request from the Loyon Red Guard asked the Supreme Court to re-examine the legality of Loyo Revolution League’s exclusivity clause. The court has released a ruling that maintains the LRL’s right over exclusive baseball coverage within the country, yet determined that there was not a legal basis for the league to restrict multiversal baseball media from Loyo’s upstart special economic zones.

For now, that ruling will open the gates for citizens of Mitsuda and Sayosona to access information about foreign leagues, including the massively popular LPB. Many citizens haven’t read a word of baseball media not written in the country.

“There are some worries in the country. A lot of people are concerned about what it's going to mean. Loyo has been isolated for a long time,” said Tan Xinyun, a youth baseball coach in Hanseong. No one really knows how this will affect the country.”

Crowds in Mitsuda and Sayosona gathered in city centers to celebrate the ruling, and some had even procured newspapers and bulletins from Milchamian traders. Chaos erupted as the crowd tore pieces in a frenzy, trying to secure a keepsake of the historic day.

“I got a great start of an article here about Batya Jo and Da Daniels, and I want everyone to know about it,” said Mimi Love, 73, long-time resident of Mitsuda, who proudly displayed a tattered inch-long piece of newspaper in a frame above her front door.

The ruling has sparked debate in the Communist Party of Loyo, with agitations threatening to splinter the governing party of the country. In heated sessions of the central committee, members argued about what should be done in the wake of the bombshell news.

“This ruling threatens not only the security of Loyo’s media sovereignty, but the security of the entire country and the revolutionary project started so long ago,” said committee member Mica Buchas.

Buchas thundered in the hall of the central committee, stating that the revolutionary fathers have been shamed by the unanticipated change. Others in the party have had a more moderated response, trying to convince friends and colleagues that this isn’t a nail in the coffin for the future of Loyon sport.

“Frankly I don’t see a big deal here to get upset about. I don’t think that foreign leagues will be able to compete with our baseball league,” said former Revolutionary Police Commissioner Deng Chao. “The Loyon nation understands that the game inside the country is unique. There are elements of the game here that you can’t find elsewhere. I think it’ll put some fire under the LRL to be the best it can be. You can’t just give any Loyon a baseball magazine and expect them to become bigger fans of a foreign league. These leagues will have to learn how to speak to a Loyon. For example, they don’t like the commercialization that happens in other leagues because it means that players move around more than they’re used to.”

Radio critic Sumida Eisen was celebratory on his broadcast following the announcement. “For too long the communist party has dictated what can and can’t be said in this country,” Eisen said. “This is a step forward, only a step, but it’s a step that leads our country closer to a sustainable path.”

Sumida has been the most vocal critic of Loyo’s governing party, advocating for the country’s participation in the global economy, and a reformist future. His criticisms have led in part to the party’s continuing policy of “openness”, prioritizing Loyo’s advancement as a modern country. Loyo opened the door for limited markets in special economic zones around the country, and Sumida is vying for his hometown of Arayoro to be the next.

“We can only hope that it can continue,” said Sumida. “We can’t keep getting left behind the rest of the world.”

Lineup for Series IV: The Star Enpire:
SS: #18 Bo Ayoyara, 29, R (Narangara Motors)
1B: #17 Shiryo Gerras, 32, R (St. Hayahoma’s)
DH: #7 Nika Vulcae, 27 (National Pantheon)
3B: #16 Chrissy Salvatore, 30, R (Loyo Athletic Reds)
CF: #6 Francis Koo, 30, L (St. Donghai’s)
2B: #28 Will Docan, 27, R (St. Hayahoma’s)
LF: #20 Isabel Morata, 29, R (Saint Reicarn Saints [SNL])
RF: #22 Meung Boma, 31, L (United Sugar)
C: #1 Hyon Shin, 28, R (St. Yoosan’s)

Pitching (SP, RP, CP):
Game One: Hawoo, Min, Soojin
Game Two: Cross, Avantaje, Hajoon
Game Three: Zao, Moon, Mun

by **Zwangzug** » Fri Jan 20, 2023 9:38 pm

Even Griffith Puyo-Sachar, talented as he was, could not specialize in every area of scouting and research. For that, he had his assistant coaches. There was Cassie Montana, the hitting coach. Lydia Wallace, in charge of advanced scouting, but as liable to break into song as she was to quote someone's OPS to the third decimal place. And, of course, there was Napoleon Huey.

"Where did you find him, coach?" Jolene asked respectfully. "He's very...thoughtful."

"Oh, we go all the way back to Universitaet Schwandt. Played broomball with Nancy and me."

"I see," Jolene said.

"So," Napoleon had asked her after she'd surrendered the winning run in game one, "what seems to be the issue?"

"They were hitting my change-up," Jolene had explained.

"Your change-up. Mmhmm. And what happens when you throw the changeup?"

"Well, uh, in this case, Gary McKinney drives it into right field."

"Okay, but we can't control what McKinney does, we can only control what you do. So what happens when you throw the changeup?"

"Uh, well, first, Gwen or whoever puts down the sign, and then I set my grip up, and then I go into my windup, or the stretch if there's runners on, and then, I pitch, and then the follow-through."

"Okay, good. Now say you've thrown the change-up, and McKinney hits it, and then Gwen gives you the sign again. What could you do in that situation?"

"Well, I could shake her off..."

"Shake her off! That's a great idea! You assert your own agency!"

"Or, in this case, I could watch Xavier Pineault get a sac fly and push someone in."

"Okay. And what did you do after the game?"

"Well, I showered, and then I gave a snarky interview to the press."

"That's a great strategy! Giving interviews to the press shows that you're still able to communicate and take on your role as an entertainer, and sarcasm can be a healthy way to handle the frustration of losing a game."

"Okay, but I was kind of hoping you could give me different strategies. Like, do you know any new pitches I could try? Or a different windup?"

"New pitches? Whoa, whoa, don't be silly, I'm just the coach."

"Yes. It's your job."

"I mean, you've had that arm for years and years! You know better than anyone else how to take care of it!"

Phyllis rolled her eyes. Maybe she could pick Vincent's brain after all. As much as he intimidated her, he knew his stuff.

by **South Americanastan** » Fri Jan 20, 2023 10:10 pm

17 SOUTH AMERICANASTAN BEARS (2-4) vs. UR KATTERIMUNK NBT (2-4)
FIRST INNING, GAME ONE
NORTHGOLD KALIKADROME, SOUTHBANK, KALIKA PROVINCE, SOUTH AMERICANASTAN

A wide, sweeping aerial shot of the banks of Lake Kalika holds the attention of the screen, slowly moving towards and zooming towards the Northgold Kalikadrome. A graphic displaying the flags of the two countries, along with their names, records, and rankings, topped by "GROUP D ROUND THREE" gobbles up the bottom fifth of the screen. Triumphant music blares through the flatscreen's speakers, slowly fading out and giving way to the voices of two announcers.

CHRIS: "Hiya Folks, this is INTERNATIONAL BASEBALL on SABC, I'm Chris Johnson here with my partner Den Pallows on the call for this group stage matchup between an established juggernaut and a newcomer looking to make a splash. Katterimunk, in its first year of WBC compeition, fighting to a respectable 2-4 start off the back of a 2-1 split against Atheara, though followed by a sweep by Super Llamaland. Meanwhile, for the Bears, same story, different order. A sweep by Super Llamaland followed by a 2-1 split over Sherpa. Den, it wasn't all too long ago that the Bears were in a similar position to the one Katterimunk finds itself in now, do you see that same Cinderella magic in this Katterimunk team?"

DEN: "Leading with a convincing 2-1 split over a ranked side was obviously a good sign for them, but that sweep by Super Llamaland has to raise some questions. Obviously you don't expect a new side to come out and win a series against one of the best teams in the WBC, but two straight blowouts raise some obvious concerns on both sides of the ball for this team. I think this is going to be the series where we find out whether Katterimunk has the fight needed for a playoff berth."

The aerial shot finally reaches the Kalikadrome, and circles around the stadium. A sea of red, green, and white engulf the stands while the skyline of downtown Southbank provides a dramatic backdrop. Another graphic appears, showing the lineup of each team on opposite sides of the screen.

CHRIS: "And of course we have the lineups of both teams. That bombastic batting order for the Bears, looking to put a few new craters in the moon tonight. The Katterimunk lineup, the wild cards in this group, still looking to prove themselves against top-level competition."

The camera cuts away to the Katterimunk pitcher conversing with his catcher and pitching coach on the mound pregame, holding onto the shot as the announcers give their input on the situation.

CHRIS: "And here's Katterimunk's No. 2 man, second in that rotation for a reason, pitching 5 shutout innings in his first start against Atheara, only for the bullpen to give up 4 runs for the loss, and now he's looking to lock up the win today. Den, as a former player, how do you cope with games like that, where your teammates let you down?"

DEN: "You really just have to keep your nose to the grindstone, keep working, and just really continue on from it. Focus on doing your job and yours only. Worrying about your teammates is a dangerous game, and the only way to win it is not to play."

The camera then flashes over to Jack Manning, chewing bubblegum in the on-deck circle and taking practice swings. He glances at the camera and blows another bubble.

CHRIS: "Leading off for the Bears, as always, Jack Manning. Even as he loses some baserunning speed with age, he's still more than quick enough to outrun Father Time, earning an All-Star berth in WBC 55 and batting .311 with 3 home runs so far in his age 36 WBC."

DEN: "Every player's got a favorite player other than themselves, and in South Americanastan, that player is overwhelmingly Jack Manning. Brash, boisterous, and most of all, talented, he's the man that every baseball player, from Little League to the SABL, wishes they could be."

Jack Manning strides up the plate, ritualistically digging his feet into the right-hand batter's box and tapping his bat on the plate before settling in. The Katterimunk pitcher winds up, and releases a scalding fast ball towards the plate. Manning takes his load step and his bat moves forward, seeking the ball as it steams towards home plate.

CHRIS: "AND THAT BALL IS NAILED HARDER THAN A [CENSORED BY SOUTH AMERICANASTAN TELEVISION ETHICS COUNCIL], JACK MANNING GETS RIGHT ON THE FIRST PITCH AND IT IS GONE! FIRST PITCH HOME RUN AND WE ARE OFF TO THE RACES HERE IN SOUTH AMERICANASTAN!"

Manning trots around the bases, soaking in the atmosphere of the ballpark. The roar of the crowd, the waving of towels, and most enjoyably, the somber and stunned expressions of the Katterimunk national team. He rounds third base, fist bumping the third base coach as he does so. He reaches home, turns around, and falls on it ass-first. He then begins mimicking a snow angel on top of home plate, causing the crowd to erupt in a chrous of whoops and cheers.

The camera then cuts to Frank Malone stepping up to the plate, reaching a 1-2 count before smacking a line drive single right over second base.

DEN: "The Bears are already building up a good bit of momentum here, this could get out of hand quickly..."

Gareth Sevriens slaps another single just over the outstretched glove of the Katterimunk first baseman, making it runners on the corners for cleanup hitter Garry O'Hanagan.

CHRIS: "Here comes O'Hanagan, prime run-scoring opportunity for the big hitter, he's surely licking his chops for an extra base hit.

O'Hanagan steps into the batter's box, preparing for the delivery of the first pitch. A curveball ducks just under the bottom of the strike zone for a 1-0 count, followed by a high fastball to make it 2-0. He takes a timeout to adjust his batting gloves and look over at the third base coach. A thumbs up sandwiched between meaningless signs tells him all he needs to know.

CHRIS: "And that's a deep line drive, down the line and past the right fielder. O'Hanagan steaming towards second with Sevriens sprinting towards third and Malone gunning for home, the ball bounces off the wall, the throw comes into third and it will be NOT IN TIME!"

DEN: "You can see it in the dugout, the Bears are in their element now and they'll be hard to stop. You can see it in the pitcher, too, they're getting in his head."

A Pat Larson 3-pitch strikeout acts as comedown for the Bears soon after.

CHRIS: "Now, Tommy Vincent is going to be looking for his first hit in the Kalikadrome, after going 0-for-7 in their opening series, he's currently 4-for-15"

Vincent walks up to the plate almost nervously, lacking the pomp and circumstance of the other batter's entrances, along with no attempts at showmanship. In his mind, he's a man on a mission. To everyone else, he looks like a fish out of water. Lucky for him, he's still blissfully ignorant of this fact.

The first pitch goes by for a strike, clipping the lower outside corner of the zone and drawing boos from the small contingent of already shitfaced fans clustered in Section 110. The second pitch streaks behind Vincent's head. This time, the sober fans are booing, too. The next pitch, a curveball near the bottom of the zone, is primed for contact.

Tommy's bat sends the ball into a strong line drive, low and almost parallel to the ground. It ducks under the raised leg of the pitcher, zipping straight down the middle of the infield. It clips the top of the second base bag, sending it hopping over the outstretched glove of the Katterimunk second baseman as Frank Malone comes in to score. Tommy Vincent steps on first base, sealing his first hit in his home ballpark and first RBI in the WBC. The stadium erupts into cheers as the first base coach congratulates Vincent on his first home hit.

CHRIS: "And there it is, his first hit at home and first WBC RBI, all wrapped in one neat little package. Hopefully, it'll be the first of many."

Jacob Monte follows up this moment of joy with a strikeout off a full count, as the pitch barely clips the inside of the zone. Micheal Kelly is lucky not to be ejected in the ensuing argument. Owen Smith draws an HBP to load the bases.

DEN: "This man needs no introduction, Frank Monteforte, one of the greatest ballplayers to come out of Americanastan already and he's only 23. Signed his discharge papers and Sophie City Monarchs contract with one penstroke over the offseason and now he's looking to live up to the hype."

Frank Monteforte spits a piece of gum into the grass next to the on-deck circle (A habit that his earned him the hatred of many groundskeepers) and saunters to the plate. He steps into his batter's box, wasting no time getting into his stance and practically daring the pitcher to throw anywhere near the strike zone. The first pitch is high and outside, and the second is too. With it evident that Monteforte does not plan to chase anything, the pitcher finally throws a ball into the strike zone, a slider inside.

CHRIS: "MONTEFORTE HITS THAT ONE SOLID, A TOWERING FLY BALL TO DEEP LEFT FIELD, AND THAT WILL FIND ITS WAY INTO THE SECOND DECK! A GRAND SLAM FROM FRANK MONTEFORTE TO MAKE IT 7-0 IN ONLY THE FIRST INNING! KATTERIMUNK LEFT REELING FROM A MONSTER FIRST GO THROUGH THE LINEUP!"

by **Quebec and Shingoryeo** » Fri Jan 20, 2023 11:32 pm

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
Part 2

A local baseball stadium, Montevicio, Yoseo-Manitoba

'Beep beep!'

The swirl of dust blowing over the ground and the sounds of quick, uncontrolled footsteps indicate the high schoolers' practice. Placed into pairs three-dozen of them are shown practicing situational drills, with them mostly working around fielding accuracy, ball judgment and anticipation when facing a batted ball on contact.

With the hot Montevician sun and the southern humidity, situated on the narrow corridor of beaches that are faced against the mountain ranges on both sides of the Quebeco-Huayramarcan border, the players' grunts and struggles surprised nobody. Their hard work is certainly being paid off though, as you would notice several men and women, all dressed in a coach's uniform, watch from the dugout. Aged anywhere between the twenties and the fifties, they are busy chatting to each other about some of the players' techniques.

Their head coach, a man in his forties busy administering the fungo treatment to the freshmen and the sophomores, is Emile Cassault, the only one of the coaches out in the field. His hands, from years of playing in the pros and then coaching at the high school level, are filled with blisters and calluses, and you cannot help but to notice them as he would pick up a ball, gives it a light lift, and then swings it into the air. The player, who would not be given a specific direction to catch, would then have to send the ball to their partner to register an out and do it thrice before being able to move to the next station.

As expected the defensive drills are anything but easy, and over time both the players and their head coach are being drenched in sweat. Eventually, after about a couple of hours of practice, this part of the practice stops the coach blasts the whistle. The players would feel their body relaxed as they come to a crouching or a sitting position on the dusty ground, full of dirt and sweat on their jerseys. 'Alright, stop,' Cassault says, receiving no response from the players. 'We have a special guest here today. He lives just down the road from us, but actually used to belike you guys just twenty years ago. Now, excuse me, Theo, why don't you come to speak to us for a moment?'

'Of course,' answers Theo-Alexandre Pinson, as he hops out of the dugout and enters the field. As with other coaches he is dressed in his old high school uniform, that of the black and white of the Sangwon Collegiate and Commercial Institute, but the relative age of the uniform and small differences, like that of a golden star attached on the armband, suggests that he was an alumnus from some time back. It's clear from its state that he has won trophies before, and has actually worn these uniforms.

'Good morning everybody, T-A Pinson here. It is my pleasure, especially as the current player of the Montevicio Dodgers, to welcome you to the Monte. I see that we are still having fielding issues, as me and my teammates did way back when. For many of you, it's not easy coming up from the middle school or the - are you guys finding the drills?'

The high schoolers, not having to worry so much about what their teacher or coach, were quick in their answers in front of a baseball icon, saying that the 'fielding practices were hard', 'unpredictable' and that 'they cannot wait for this to be over'.

'No worries! I totally understand what you guys mean,' Theo said, the thirty-six year old beaming in confidence as he looked back at them. Feeling a slight bit of flashback to his own high school days, Pinson tried his best to stay diplomatic, perhaps being influenced by the fact that he had competed with the current head coach and many of the assistants on this team. 'High school were some of the toughest days of my career and my life, and I too have found those training drills difficult. If anything, we all know that I'm not an outstanding infielder, even though ...'

The players chuckled, them exactly knowing what the power batter had meant. 'Exactly! But they are there for you to keep yourself aware at all times, and you know, to respond in case you end up having to throw a hot, live ball meticulously placed on contact. So it's always good to be prepared, and figure out how it goes.'

Later that day...

'Sorry for not being able to talk much earlier. Kids come first, and I always want those from Sangwon CVI to do well - baseball, basketball, rugby, whatever the sport. But I'm sure you already know that.' answers Theo-Alexandre 'T.A' Pinson, with the camera crew returning for the interview at a local Huayramarcan restaurant. The offseason has been a fairly quiet ride for Pinson, even as all the controversies had been going around him.

Since the filing of the divorce case against him in late October, just weeks after Montevicio Dodgers' knock-out at the hands of his hometown Saint John Green Sox, he has been living in his apartment in Baja Calania, a small, beachside city of 170,000 people. Located about thirty kilometres away from Montevicio and bordering Huayramarca directly to the south, Baja Calania is a port city that has been known more for vacationing and holiday houses in recent years with an increasing influx of people moving from its northern neighbour.

As expected Pinson is determined to bring a Quebec Series ring to the Montevicio Dodgers as the final year of his contract approaches, and he knows it is a tall task. Especially with the level of noise surrounding the team, whether they be mere rumours or actually damaging news, he is more than aware that it has somewhat put a framework around his first two years with the Dodgers:

'Yes,' Pinson nods, admitting that it has not been a particularly time period of his life. 'I would be lying if I am not upset over a lot of things happening around me and my team right now, and it...affects everybody. Lots of people are hurt by the barrage of news that we see out each and every day.'

He would then change his tone, suggesting that he knows what he's coming for: 'But much of it is just part of being a Montevicio Dodger. Dodger Blue always carries extra value and, you know, there is that additional glitter and gold to the letterings that a lot of other clubs don't have.'

This does not surprise anybody in particular, especially considering the stature of the Montevicio Dodgers, as we move into the montage scenes covering the last couple of years. One of the original six members of the Quebecois Baseball Organisation (QBO), they have won the most number of the Quebec Series from an Imperial League side with eight titles, and are considered a favourite - year in, year out - even more so than the Kingston Tigers, and arguably on the same level as Saguenay Lions, Pinson's former team.

The Dodgers, often known for their progressive, trend-setting ways, harmonious locker rooms and legendary aces, are perhaps the most oversubscribed team in Quebecois sports relative to the market size and team success, especially with the Green Gloves Range's proximity to the Bressner Boulevard of West Coast film and media known for its sensationalism and commercialism. With this in mind, every movement, a high and a low, involving the team and its star-studded squad ends up being recorded and reverbrated, and Pinson's case is of no exception.

Dodgers made no shy of the fact that Pinson was considered to be the final piece of the puzzle to the Dodgers' title quest, which had eluded them for eleven years since their 2045 Quebec Series won with legendary southpaw Keith Bankosky. The team had made it so, so did the media and the public - that winter alone had seen a brief period where the outfielder, in the middle of the 54th Magic run on the W.B.C. in Zwangzug, had outshone (or at least out-attentioned) Myeong-Shin and in centre of the picture.

In hindsight the acquisition, which had propelled the Dodgers to the top of the salary cap hierarchy, made sense. The team naturally played better as they would finish to back-to-back 100-win seasons, something that the team had not enjoyed even in the Bankosky days of three Quebec Series titles in 20 years. But on both seasons they would fall short of the goal, first losing on the Quebec Series to Songak Expos of Ranorian catcher Nicholas Lux's fame, and then to Saint John Green Sox in the Imperial League Championship Series.

Eventually, both the fear of failure, and the sugar crash from the highs of it all would eventually culminate into his divorce filing as irreconcilable differences, which had mostly meant Pinson's infidelity to his wife, actress Natalie Gregoris, to a former collegoate gymnast-turned-BingBong sensation. Neither the narrator nor the persons involved would say much on that footage, but his affair, perhaps bolstered by the overconfidence, appears as clear as a night and day. At that moment of the offseason things would come crashing down, with screen showing endless flashes aiming at Pinson's way in front of his Montevicio mansion, alternated by sudden appearance of camera footages and major newspaper headlines from The Taegukgi to Songak Praetorian, to suggest that all has fallen apart in his case.

A couple months have passed since, and now it's January. When asked about the divorce proceedings, Pinson becomes more emotional over his regrets. 'I wish it were otherwise,' Pinson answers. 'But you know, we all make mistakes. Has Myeong-Shin or Ian said anything about it?' he asks about his friends, the baseballer aware in that Heo, his friend and the other half of the TP포 duo, and Lautner, a hall-of-fame quarterback who actually grew up in Montevicio.

The interview responds that Ian Lautner was unable to be reached, while Myeong-Shin mostly commented that he understood Theo's difficulties, especially as a professional sportsman who is rarely at home.

'I see,' responds Pinson, the veteran limiting comments afterwards when asked about the rivalry. Pinson's comments, a departure from his usually fiery, head-over-heels brand of speaking, suggest that the rivalry's a friendly one that held every bit of competitive edge to it, but without hatred. Both of them had grown up with immigrant parents - Theo's mum Fabiana was an Azurean from Nakan, a medium-sized city just an hour west of Lansdowne Branch, a satellite suburb of Kingston; while late Maureen Turner had Donnaconan parents - moved distances away from their hometowns while young, and had been viewed as sensations, surefire first-stage draft selection for their local teams.

But there are some noticeable differences between the two of them, one thing that those watching the documentary would notice right on the spot...

by **Chromatika** » Fri Jan 20, 2023 11:43 pm

With Sweep of Cassadaigua, Chromatika Maintains Control of Group

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

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

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

Even without the support of Clara and Nalrina Ayonara, the Chromatika Outliers were able to sweep aside Cassadaigua with a complete sweep on the road as they moved to 7-2 in the early group stage. Raitis Randa hit two-run home runs in all three games, and the new Catcher, Gary Light, was clutch in throwing out a pair of runners. Katerina Pavlova was successful in two save opportunities, as the Chromatik bullpen held firm, only conceding a single run in the last four innings of every game in the series.

Now, it's all about getting things squared away as they face the supposedly weaker teams in the group. Dropping two of three to Loyo showed that this team is not infallible. It's important to continue to build up the momentum in a long, arduous group stage.

First clash between the top two seeds? Advantage, Chromatika.

by **Chromatika** » Sat Jan 21, 2023 12:00 am

How do things look after twelve games? Let's see! Series 4 Cutoff.

Remember, there is an extra off day between now and Series 5. Series 5 will be scored around 10PM Pacific on Monday, January 23rd.

WORLD BASEBALL CLASSIC 56

GROUP STAGE - SERIES 4
Chromatik Games were scored by Tumbra

Group A

Game 1
Aust Scor                       2 0 0 0 0 2 0 0 0  4
Ko-oren                         0 0 4 0 0 1 0 0 X  5

Qasden                          0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 4  5
Abanhfleft                      0 0 0 0 3 0 3 0 X  6

South Newlandia                 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 1  2
Imperial Haiti                  0 0 0 0 0 0 3 0 X  3

Game 2
Aust Scor                       0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0  1
Ko-oren                         0 1 3 3 0 1 0 0 X  8

Qasden                          0 0 0 1 0 1 5 0 1  8
Abanhfleft                      2 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0  3

South Newlandia                 0 4 0 0 0 0 2 0 0  6
Imperial Haiti                  0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0  1

Game 3
Aust Scor                       0 6 0 0 0 2 0 0 0  8
Ko-oren                         1 0 0 1 0 0 0 1 3  6

Qasden                          0 0 1 0 0 0 2 0 0  3
Abanhfleft                      0 0 1 1 1 0 0 1 X  4

South Newlandia                 0 0 1 3 0 2 1 0 1  8
Imperial Haiti                  0 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0  2

Group A                 Pld    W   L    RF   RA   RD
1 South Newlandia        12    9   3    83   47  +36
2 Abanhfleft             12    9   3    72   49  +23
3 Ko-oren                12    7   5    68   66   +2
4 Imperial Haiti         12    5   7    47   59  −12
5 Qasden                 12    5   7    57   58   −1
6 Aust Scor              12    1  11    34   82  −48

Group B

Game 1
Nova Anglicana                  0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 1  2
Dod Rava                        1 0 0 2 0 0 0 1 X  4

The Cannaland Islands           3 0 2 0 0 0 0 0 0  5
Ingont                          1 0 0 1 1 0 0 0 0  3

Zwangzug                        3 2 0 0 0 1 0 1 0  7
The Greater Nordics             0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0  1

Game 2
Nova Anglicana                  0 0 0 0 0 4 0 0 0  4
Dod Rava                        0 0 0 0 0 0 0 2 0  2

The Cannaland Islands           2 1 0 0 2 4 0 2 0 11
Ingont                          0 2 0 2 0 0 2 3 1 10

Zwangzug                        3 1 0 0 0 0 0 3 0  7
The Greater Nordics             0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1  1

Game 3
Nova Anglicana                  0 0 0 2 0 0 1 1 2  6
Dod Rava                        2 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0  3

The Cannaland Islands           2 0 3 0 0 1 1 0 2 0  9
Ingont                          0 3 0 0 2 1 0 3 0 2 11

Zwangzug                        0 0 4 0 0 0 0 0 0 0  4
The Greater Nordics             3 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 2  6

Group B                  Pld    W   L    RF   RA   RD
1 Zwangzug                12    9   3    64   28  +36
2 Nova Anglicana          12    8   4    50   38  +12
3 Dod Rava                12    5   7    52   59   −7
4 Ingont                  12    5   7    65   71   −6
5 The Greater Nordics     12    5   7    50   67  −17
6 The Cannaland Islands   12    4   8    50   68  −18

Group C

Game 1
The Eshurium Empire             0 1 0 0 0 0 0 1 0  2
Tikariot                        0 0 0 0 0 0 0 7 X  7

Quebec & Shingoryeo             1 0 0 3 0 0 0 2 1  7
StrayaRoos                      0 0 0 3 0 0 0 0 0  3

Zorinitiee                      1 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0  2
Drawkland                       0 1 0 0 2 0 0 5 X  8

Game 2
The Eshurium Empire             0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0  1
Tikariot                        0 1 0 0 4 0 0 4 X  9

Quebec & Shingoryeo             0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0  1
StrayaRoos                      0 0 2 0 0 0 0 0 X  2

Zorinitiee                      0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0  1
Drawkland                       0 1 0 2 0 0 1 0 X  4

Game 3
The Eshurium Empire             0 2 0 0 1 0 0 0 0  3
Tikariot                        0 0 0 0 0 4 0 0 X  4

Quebec & Shingoryeo             1 1 1 1 3 0 1 0 0  8
StrayaRoos                      0 0 0 0 0 0 1 1 0  2

Zorinitiee                      1 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0  2
Drawkland                       0 1 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1  3

Group C                 Pld    W   L    RF   RA   RD
1 Drawkland              12   10   2    58   31  +27
2 Quebec & Shingoryeo    12    9   3    61   37  +24
3 Tikariot               12    7   5    61   55   +6
4 The Eshurium Empire    12    4   8    46   70  −24
5 Zorinitiee             12    4   8    48   45   +3
6 StrayaRoos             12    2  10    31   67  −36

Group D

Game 1
South Americanastan             0 1 3 1 0 0 0 0 0  5
Atheara                         0 0 0 0 2 1 3 0 X  6

Super-Llamaland                 0 1 0 0 1 0 0 0 0  2
Sherpa Empire                   0 0 1 0 0 0 2 0 X  3

Katterimunk                     0 0 0 1 0 0 0 2 0  3
Benjium                         0 0 2 0 0 1 0 0 5  8

Game 2
South Americanastan             2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1  3
Atheara                         0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 1  2

Super-Llamaland                 0 0 0 0 1 2 0 8 2 13
Sherpa Empire                   1 0 0 0 0 2 0 0 0  3

Katterimunk                     0 0 2 0 2 4 0 4 3 15
Benjium                         0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0  0

Game 3
South Americanastan             0 0 0 1 0 1 0 1 0  3
Atheara                         0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0  1

Super-Llamaland                 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0  1
Sherpa Empire                   0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 1  2

Katterimunk                     0 0 3 1 0 1 0 0 0 0  5
Benjium                         0 0 0 0 0 0 4 1 0 1  6

Group D                 Pld    W   L    RF   RA   RD
1 Super-Llamaland        12    9   3    72   26  +46
2 Sherpa Empire          12    6   6    52   54   −2
3 South Americanastan    12    6   6    59   55   +4
4 Benjium                12    6   6    50   82  −32
5 Atheara                12    5   7    46   57  −11
6 Katterimunk            12    4   8    62   67   −5

Group E

Game 1
New Portland Republic           0 0 0 1 0 2 1 7 0 11
Srednjaci                       0 1 0 0 0 1 1 2 0  5

The 189                         0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 1  2
Liventia                        0 0 0 0 0 1 1 0 4  6

HUElavia                        0 0 1 0 0 1 0 0 0  2
Ranoria                         0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0  1

Game 2
New Portland Republic           1 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 4  6
Srednjaci                       2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0  2

The 189                         0 0 0 0 1 0 0 1 0  2
Liventia                        1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0  1

HUElavia                        0 0 0 1 1 2 0 0 0  4
Ranoria                         0 0 0 3 0 0 0 0 0  3

Game 3
New Portland Republic           0 0 0 0 0 1 1 0 0  2
Srednjaci                       0 1 0 0 0 2 0 0 X  3

The 189                         0 0 1 0 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 0  3
Liventia                        0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 2 0 0 3  6

HUElavia                        1 0 1 1 0 0 0 0 0  3
Ranoria                         0 2 0 0 0 0 0 1 1  4

Group E                  Pld    W   L    RF   RA   RD
1 Liventia                12    9   3    57   39  +18
2 HUElavia                12    6   6    40   49   −9
3 Ranoria                 12    6   6    43   44   −1
4 New Portland Republic   12    5   7    51   58   −7
5 The 189                 12    5   7    52   42  +10
6 Srednjaci               12    5   7    47   58  −11

Group F

Game 1
Canadian Dominion               0 0 2 0 0 0 0 0 0  2
Eshialand                       0 0 1 0 0 0 1 0 1  3

Hapilopper                      0 4 2 1 2 0 0 2 1 12
Le est de Espanya               1 0 0 0 0 2 0 0 0  3

The Republic of Covelandia      0 0  0 0 0 0 2 0 0  2
Banija                          0 0 11 1 2 0 2 0 X 16

Game 2
Canadian Dominion               1 0 0 0 0 1 2 0 0  4
Eshialand                       0 2 1 0 0 0 2 1 X  6

Hapilopper                      2 0 0 0 0 1 0 1 0  4
Le est de Espanya               0 0 0 0 3 0 0 0 0  3

The Republic of Covelandia      0 0 0 0 0 0 0 2 0  2
Banija                          2 4 0 0 3 0 1 0 X 10

Game 3
Canadian Dominion               0 0 0 0 0 0 3 3 0  6
Eshialand                       0 0 1 1 0 0 1 1 1  5

Hapilopper                      0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0  1
Le est de Espanya               0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 4  4

The Republic of Covelandia      0 0 0 1 0 2 0 0 0  3
Banija                          0 1 1 0 0 3 0 0 X  5

Group F                       Pld    W   L    RF   RA   RD
1 Banija                       12    8   4    68   46  +22
2 The Republic of Covelandia   12    7   5    53   67  −14
3 Eshialand                    12    7   5    64   51  +13
4 Hapilopper                   12    6   6    50   53   −3
5 Le est de Espanya            12    5   7    40   53  −13
6 Canadian Dominion            12    3   9    45   50   −5

Group G

Game 1
Milchama                        0 1 0 1 0 0 0 0 0  2
Barnettsville                   0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0  1

Caribbia                        1 1 0 0 0 0 0 5 0  7
TJUN-ia                         0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 1  2

Milk Island                     0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0  0
Melbergia                       0 2 0 0 0 2 1 4 X  9

Game 2
Milchama                        0 0 1 1 1 0 0 1 0 4  8
Barnettsville                   1 1 0 0 0 1 0 1 0 3  7

Caribbia                        0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0  0
TJUN-ia                         5 0 2 0 2 0 2 0 X 11

Milk Island                     0 1 0 2 0 0 0 1 0  4
Melbergia                       1 0 0 2 2 1 0 1 X  7

Game 3
Milchama                        0 0 1 0 4 0 0 4 0  9
Barnettsville                   0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0  0

Caribbia                        0 0 2 1 0 0 1 1 1  6
TJUN-ia                         1 0 0 0 0 5 0 8 X 14

Milk Island                     0 0 2 0 0 0 0 0 0  2
Melbergia                       0 0 0 0 2 0 0 0 1  3

Group G                 Pld    W   L    RF   RA   RD
1 TJUN-ia                12    7   5    58   47  +11
2 Melbergia              12    7   5    50   37  +13
3 Caribbia               12    7   5    60   62   −2
4 Milchama               12    6   6    49   46   +3
5 Milk Island            12    5   7    43   55  −12
6 Barnettsville          12    4   8    35   48  −13

Group H

Game 1
The Star Enpire        2 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0  3
Loyo                   0 1 0 0 2 0 0 4 X  7

Cassadaigua            0 1 0 0 0 0 0 1 0  2
Oateria                0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0  0

America B.W.S.M.H.     0 0 1 0 0 1 0 0 0  2
Chromatika             2 5 2 0 0 0 0 0 X  9

Game 2
The Star Enpire        0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0  2
Loyo                   1 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 1  3

Cassadaigua            3 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0  4
Oateria                0 1 0 1 2 0 1 0 X  5

America B.W.S.M.H.     1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0  1
Chromatika             0 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 X  2

Game 3
The Star Enpire        0 0 0 2 0 0 0 2 0  4
Loyo                   1 0 0 3 3 0 0 0 X  7

Cassadaigua            0 0 1 0 2 0 0 0 4  7
Oateria                2 0 0 1 0 0 0 1 0  4

America B.W.S.M.H.     0 4 0 0 2 2 0 0 0  8
Chromatika             0 3 0 2 0 0 0 0 0  5

Group H                 Pld    W   L    RF   RA   RD
1 Loyo                   12    9   3    65   60   +5
2 Chromatika             12    9   3    76   38  +38
3 Cassadaigua            12    6   6    57   59   −2
4 America B.W.S.M.H.     12    5   7    58   61   −3
5 The Star Enpire        12    4   8    42   55  −13
6 Oateria                12    3   9    37   62  −25

by **Drawkland** » Sat Jan 21, 2023 12:19 am

Ahead of the home series against Zorinitiee, Dan Peters and Cooper Calebs were side-by-side receiving practice tosses from Claire Kirkland and Leo Roy (the penciled starters for the next two games). It was a little battery pitching session; this was also the first time that Calebs was doing serious catching work for Roy, the ace of the Base Corps rotation.

Catching for the first time with an elite pitcher can be a daunting task. The fact that the pitcher in question is a future Hall of Famer and you, as a fellow national team member, are held to higher expectations, just increases the stress. This isn't to say that Calebs was intimidated or worried he would fail, but he knew that he had to get this right. Peters and Roy, despite never playing together at the domestic level, had a special bond from their time on the Base Corps. With Peters retiring after this classic, Calebs would have to take up the mantle and ideally deliver the same skill behind the plate. The issue is that Peters was a renowned defensive and game-calling catcher, while Calebs was a bat-first kind of backstop, so he had even taller of a mountain to climb.

As the group broke for a minute to drink some water and stay relaxed, Calebs walked up to Peters and decided to ask for advice.

"Hey Dan, how do you catch Roy's cutter so consistently? That pitch bites so quick and so late, I'm having trouble getting it to pop."

"Hmmm," Peters was surprised at first to hear the question then furrowed his brow. "Well, I try to imagine it as a late-breaking slider rather than a fastball coming in, and that sort of tricks my brain into putting the glove in the right spot. Also, what do you mean by 'pop'?"

"Oh, I meant like making the pitch pop in the glove nice and loud." Calebs shrugged. "My old high school coach told me it makes the ump call more strikes."

"You coach told you that?" Peters gave a hearty laugh. "That's complete crap! No ump at this level is fooled by something like that."

"Wait, really?" Calebs looked incredulous. "I've been doing that for most of my career, trying to grab balls and get them in the pocket where it pops best."

"Maybe that's why your catching skills aren't up to snuff." Peters put his glove back on and showed it to his younger counterpart. "Look, you don't want to grab or reach for pitches. Let the ball come to you and cushion the blow, as if you were trying to catch without a glove at all. It gives you much better control, and it's much easier to frame pitches that way."

"Really?" Calebs got his own glove back on and squeezed it a few times.

"Yeah. I bet it'll help you catch Roy and Rodriguez's stuff, too. I'm sure it's much easier to just follow the path and let it land in your glove rather than trying to cut it off earlier than usual."

"Any other sage advice, oh wise one?" Calebs smirked a bit, but he was genuinely glad for the advice.

"Mm, try to catch the ball between your pointer finger and thumb. You'll have more control that way rather than letting it travel all the way to the outer pocket. Hopefully that'll produce fewer dropped strikes, which you'll need for some of the nasty breaking stuff this pitching staff has."

"Thanks Dan, I appreciate it."

"No problem, kid. That's about all I'm good for these days."

"Hey, I could give you some hitting tips if you want!" Calebs made a finger gun with his right hand, which Peters shook off.

"Ah, the time for improving my swing has passed." Peters waved his hand dismissively. "It's not like I'm limber enough to hustle out extra bases anymore anyway! Now let's get back, don't want to keep the pitchers waiting. They hate that."

by **Barnettsville** » Sat Jan 21, 2023 7:31 am

CAPITAL CITY GAZETTE

OUCH

ST. CATHERINE - What was hyped in the three rivers region as the series of the first half, turned into a disaster of epic proportions: a three-game sweep by the apparently pissed off Warriors at being called the Swords. To be fair, the Jays would probably feel the same way if we were called the Swallows. (OOC: Don't try it.)

Game one in hindsight was a classic as the Jays only lost 2-1, with Ian MacGregor (0-2) going the distance.

Game 2 became interesting quickly. The Blue Jay bats started quickly, going up 2-0 in the second. The next three innings saw Milchama pick up single runs in each to go up 3-2. The Jays followed with a single run in the sixth to tie it at three, and each team picked up one in the eighth to make it 4-4 into extra innings.

The tenth? Oy vey.

Yu Bryant allowed back-to-back homers right off the get-go, yielding to Jon-Paul Graham, who allowed one of his own beforebeing pulled with two outs on a matchup substitution. Kane Chandler (0-1) then allowed another homer before closing the inning out down 8-4. The offense did pick up three, but hit into a game-ending double play to lose 8-7.

Game three was the worst of them all. Not only could the pitching staff not do anything (all pitchers that could pitch did), but the offense was non-existent. The final line: 0 runs, 0 hits, 3 errors, 0 walks, and 16 strikeouts. Benson (1-2) pitched 5 innings and allowed 5 runs; Graham pitched the sixth, Bryant the seventh, Chandler (3 runs) and Kramer (1 run) took the eighth, and Kramer (1 batter before being ejected) and Ford finished the game.

So, Barnettsville now sits at 4-8, three games out of first, second AND third. The rumors have begun to swirl about wholesale changes with coaching staff and players if the team doesn't turn around.

That proving ground starts with co-leader Caribbia.

by **Liventia** » Sat Jan 21, 2023 9:53 am

Liventia roster for WBC56 (yes, it's an old roster, but it's better than nothing; apologies)

Permissions:

Style mod +3

Home stadium
Port Cartfort Park, capacity 24,100; DH used
Home ground of The Saboteurs Baseball Club Port Cartfort (CBL), average home attendance 22,100
Dimensions:
Left foul pole 317 ft; left field 349 ft; left-centre 397 ft; centre field 429 ft; right-centre 402 ft; right field 366 ft; right foul pole 322 ft; wall height 7 ft in left/left-centre; 13 ft in centre; 15 ft in right/right-centre
Right-handed hitters have far more joy at PCP than left-handed hitters. There are also a high number of triples and thanks to the dimensions, inside-the-park home runs are not uncommon at PCP.

The team is colloquially known as the Red-and-Gold, after the colours of the Liventian flag (and their uniforms).

Starting Pitchers

			Age  B/T  Team			G/GS   W–L–SV   ERA   WHIP   K/9   BB/9   FIP-   WAR   PA   H–AB   .AVG/.OBP/.SLG   Notes
#23 Noah Rippin		28   L/R  Dover Bills		28/28  13–4     1.67* 0.61*  14.5* 1.0*   39*    8.2*                               Led league in Ks (286)
  Awards: CBL Pitcher of the Year, All-Star
  Throws: Four-seamer 99-101 mph, cutter, curveball, slider, changeup
#44 Everton Ing		23   L/L  Neverend Gunslngers	30/30* 17*–6	2.22  0.90   10.5  1.6    51     7.9
  Awards: All-Star
  Throws: Four-seamer 98-100 mph, curveball, slider, changeup
#39 Daryl Holden	27   L/R  Dover Bills		29/29  17*–6	2.48  0.99   10.0  1.9    54     7.3				    First WBC selection
  Awards: All-Star
  Throws: Curveball, changeup, four-seamer 93–95 mph, sinker
#4 Ashley Lutley	28   R/R  Wakeford Capitols	29/29  13–5	2.71  1.09   9.3*  2.3    71*    5.5*  73   18–64  .281/.281/.359   Led NBL in Ks (199)
  Awards: NBL Pitcher of the Year, All-Star
  Throws: Four-seamer 99-101 mph, splitter, forkball, slider, curveball, changeup
#79 Marcus Teale	27   R/R  Neverend Gunslingers	27/27  15–6	2.17  0.97   9.8   1.6    59     6.1
  Throws: Two-seamer 98-100 mph, curveball, changeup, forkball
#66 Tom Parry		28   L/L  Cittin Bashers        29/29  9–8      2.35  1.10   8.4   2.0    63     6.2                                Spot starter, first WBC selection
  Throws: Two-seamer 94–96 mph, slider, changeup, four-seamer

Relief and closing pitchers

			Age  B/T  Team			G/GS   W–L–SV   HLD   SV%    ERA   WHIP   K/9   BB/9   FIP-   WAR   Role/Usage			Notes
#20 Doug Rawsthorne	28   L/L  Talbott Hilltops	41/0   3–3–4    15    1.000  1.19  0.79   12.4  2.5    32     2.6   Long/middle relief  
  Awards: All-Star
  Throws: Four-seamer 99-101 mph, two-seamer, slider, changeup
#1 Jonathan Embrey	32   L/L  Talbott Hilltops	58/2   8–2–18   8     .947   1.56  1.07   8.8   1.2    43     3.4   Long/mop-up/stopper
  Awards: 2026 NBL Bullpen Arm of the Year, All-Star
  Throws: Sinker 93-95 mph, curveball, two-seamer
#86 Robin Hambleton	26   L/L  Dover Bills		59/0   9–5–35   0     .946   1.36  0.67   12.7  1.2    46     2.8   LOOGY/middle relief 	First WBC selection
  Throws: Four-seamer 99–101 mph, cutter, changeup
#74 Mitch Henshaw	22   R/R  Schimpol Redbirds     50/0   4–6–27   0     .844   2.49  0.99   14.7  2.6    36     3.3   Middle relief
  Throws: Four-seam 99-101 mph, slider, changeup
#47 Howard Sandercock	22   R/R  Cittin Bashers        56/0   3–4–35   0     .946   1.26  0.87   16.8  3.9    37     4.0   Set-up/occ. closer		
  Awards: All-Star
  Throws: Curveball, sinker 99-101 mph
#31 Kyle Sheffield	26   R/R  Dover Buzzards	60/0   5–3–36   0     .900   1.10  0.89   15.4  2.2    21     4.3   Set-up/Closer
  Awards: LBC Champion, All-Star
  Throws: Curveball, sinker 98-100 mph, changeup
#6 Jake Dominey		36   R/R  Jesner Spin Doctors	54/0   5–2–42*  0     .977   0.75  0.61   17.0  0.9    0      5.3   Closer			FIP of 0 two years running
  Awards: CBL Bullpen Arm of the Year, All-Star
  Throws: Four-seamer 95-97 mph, sinker, curveball

Catchers

			Age  B/T  Team			.AVG/.OBP/.SLG   HR   RBI   BB/SO   OPS+  WAR   IC     PO   A   E   PB   Notes
#9 Harold Welford	27   R/R  City Centre Keys      .307/.411/.623   37   107   77/75   188   7.7   966.2  737  98  12   6   TEAM CAPTAIN
  Awards: All-Star
#8 Nicky Minty		28   R/R  Orean Hawkeyes	.369*/.389/.803* 52*  129*  16/58   224   9.3*  913.2  698  66  10  11   Led league in OPS (1.192), will DH
  Awards: NBL Player of the Year, NBL Swing Batter Swing Award (C), All-Star
#26 Harry Millen	28   R/R  Talbott Sting Rays	.243/.329/.442   21   72    50/56   115   4.4   959.1  836  78  10   5   First WBC selection, backup catcher
  Awards: NBL Outstanding Defence Award (C)

Infielders

			Age  B/T  Pos  Team			.AVG/.OBP/.SLG   HR   RBI   BB/SO   SB/CS  SB%    OPS+  WAR   Notes/other positions
#27 Euan Malloch	27   S/R  1B   Orean Oysters		.322/.437/.664   43   121   86/88   1/4    20.0   208   7.8
  Awards: NBL Swing Batter Swing Award (1B), All-Star
#10 Edward Mull		28   L/L  1B   Jesner Spin Doctors      .315/.365/.659   52*  98    43/81   1/0    100.0  177   6.0
  Awards: CBL Player of the Year, CBL Swing Batter Swing Award (1B), All-Star, CBL Division Series playoff MVP, CBL League Championship playoff MVP
#40 Josh Gwynne		27   R/R  2B   Olympton Raiders         .244/.370/.566   36   74    69/119  28/6   82.4   161   5.7
  Awards: CBL Swing Batter Swing Award (2B)
#31 Corey Martyn        23   R/R  2B   Talbott Sting Rays       .299/.383/.444   8    54    72/101  99/21  82.5   132   5.7   First WBC selection, led NBL in R (119), plays SS
  Awards: NBL Swing Batter Swing Award (2B), All-Star, NBL Challenge Round playoff MVP
#29 Reece Raymont	26   R/R  3B   Pardbo Bisons		.312/.357/.665*  45   103   33/119  26/9   74.3   183   6.9   First season back from major injury
  Awards: CBL Swing Batter Swing Award (3B), All-Star
#22 Francis Stubbins	23   L/R  3B   Weston Misfits		.323/.386/.539   25   67    44/74   44/30  59.5   157   5.9   First WBC selection, plays SS

Outfielders

			Age  B/T  Pos  Team			.AVG/.OBP/.SLG   HR   RBI   BB/SO   SB/CS  SB%    OPS+  WAR   Notes/other positions
#14 Danny Hugill	27   S/L  LF   City Centre Keys		.311/.431/.484   20   68    98/50   67/11  85.9   160   6.4   Plays RF
  Awards: NBL Swing Batter Swing Award (LF), All-Star
#42 Pat Pallant		26   R/L  CF   Jesner Spin Doctors	.315/.333/.631   35   87    12/121  36/9   80.0   160   7.3
  Awards: CBL Swing Batter Swing Award (CF), All-Star
#3 Bradley Appleyard	28   R/R  RF   Jesner Spin Doctors	.295/.360/.568   35   81    40/109  42/10  80.8   153   4.4   Plays LF
  Awards: CBL Swing Batter Swing Award (RF)
#34 Jude Angrove	28   R/R  RF   Talbott Sting Rays	.318/.418/.625   22   56    47/16   7/0    100.0  189   4.1   Injury-hit season, plays 1B/LF/CF

Starting lineups

    v LHP starter, with DH                v RHP starter, with DH                v LHP starter, no DH                v RHP starter, no DH
1.  LF Danny Hugill (S)			  LF Danny Hugill (S)			LF Danny Hugill (S)		    LF Danny Hugill (S)
2.  SS Corey Martyn (R)			  2B Corey Martyn (R)			SS Corey Martyn (R)		    2B Corey Martyn (R)
3.  3B Reece Raymont (R)		  1B Edward Mull (L)			1B Euan Malloch (S)		    1B Edward Mull (L)
4.  1B Euan Malloch (S)			  DH Nicky Minty (R)			3B Reece Raymont (R)		    3B Reece Raymont (R)
5.  DH Nicky Minty (R)			  3B Reece Raymont (R)			C Harold Welford (R)		    CF Pat Pallant (R)
6.  C Harold Welford (R)		  RF Bradley Appleyard (R)		CF Pat Pallant (R)		    RF Bradley Appleyard (R)
7.  RF Bradley Appleyard (R)		  C Harold Welford (R)			RF Bradley Appleyard (R)	    C Harold Welford (R)
8.  CF Pat Pallant (R)			  CF Pat Pallant (R)			2B Josh Gwynne (R)		    SS Francis Stubbins (L)
9.  2B Josh Gwynne (R)			  SS Francis Stubbins (L)		Pitcher's spot			    Pitcher's spot

by **Banija** » Sat Jan 21, 2023 11:05 am

Part 1
Part 2

The Busukuma Post
Covering All of Banija, All of our News, All of the Time

Banija Esportivan Territorial Act officially passes the Lukiiko as establishment of Esportivan territory becomes official and personal union is Dissolved

District Map of the Banijan Esportivan Territories

ZANSASI, BANIJAN ESPORTIVAN TERRITORY OF NJAZA- So, we are here for Part 2 of this issue. What's the Banijan connection? We're gonna talk further about the Banijan connection to this land, and why we're here- officially and non-officially.

#2 - The Banijan connection - what's the Banijan connection? Why did we become involved here in the first place?

Why did Banijans come here in the first place? What's our history of settlement?

Groups of conservative Banijans came to this land, all the way out here in Esportiva, because they feared Mormon persecution after the country was colonized. "It is wild to think that these were groups of Banijans who were 'too conservative' to stay home, but you've got to remember the chaos of the country after the colonization." Said a historian from Northern Moravica University. "Kitarans being deported, en masse, to a distant land in Rushmore. Many thought they would simply be left there to die. Obviously, that's not what happened- but who the hell knew. There wasn't any serious evidence that the Quebecois would be especially heavy-handed(and they weren't), but there was fear that, with missionaries coming in, the country would lose its Mormon country. They wanted to protect their way of life, their faith."

"So they said, 'hey, we're out'- and they went somewhere that they thought would be beyond the reaches of the old Banijan government, the Pretenders. All the way out to Esportiva. And they were correct- the Banijans, especially at the time, had no ability to project power any sort of abroad, especially all the way in Esportiva. They were led by a Mormon Bishop at the time, Archbishop Kigongo Kinyolo. They were able to settle, into what they thought was empty land. They quickly were able to demarcate their southern border, with Boring Paradise. But they didn't know how far north they could spread.

They continued moving north until they met resistance, from the Nakaseke. A series of battles happened- called the Settlers-Nakaseke Wars, from 1849-1852. It was largely a draw- but the lore was set. They refused to call themselves a country, however, and did not give themselves a real name- instead simply calling the area 'God's Country'. Here is a quote from Archbishop Kinyolo after the peace treaty was signed. "We have been delivered by providence in this land... Granted land to fish, to farm, to prosper while worshipping. This place will not be named... We are Banijan, through and through. When Banija is freed, we will return!" Of course, many thought that independence was imminent, but it wasn't. Generations died, and more were born in this land. The connection built- although everyone considered themselves still to be Banijan.

When Banija became independent, the land was renamed Mugishaland, and declared themselves 'to be loyal to His Majesty, Mugisha the Liberator, and his constitutional successors'. At that point, the land was not annexed by Banijan- mostly because the country did not have the ability to annex land so far away. It was, functionally, a personal union- this conservative territory, running itself, with the distant Kabaka. And then, in the 1950s, when the Njaza alliance was created as powers started establishing themselves across Rushmore, Mugishaland joined- not getting into the acronym, but still an integral part of the alliance.

Modern Banijan connection to this land

Generally speaking, this is not a land that people used to think of, at home. Until, of course, the Luguba. Katrina, before she was afforded her royal titles, was actually born out here, in Zansasi. She moved to actual Banija for University, met His Majesty, Kabaka Mwanga there, and the rest is history. She's now Luguba Katrina, and she's both the husband of the current Kabaka, and the mother of the next Kabaka. That gave renewed interest from the mainland in this distant land, but once again, Banija had bigger things to focus on.

So while at the highest levels, Njaza never really crossed anybody's minds, their marriage brought a cultural renaissance of interest in the place. That was when Mugishaland experienced 'the great migration'. The local government offered cash for Banijans to move there, for 10 years, and the Banijan population of the place exploded. Free land, cheap housing, abundant jobs... Anyone who wanted a new start could move far away, and yet, still speak Olusanke and worship their God. Even though historically, Mugishaland had a small population, now the Banijans are nearly 50% of the entire population of Njaza put together. Which leaves us with...

Modern Government interest in this land

Officially? Some BS about how the Kingdom wants to help ensure peace in Njaza, and how they want to explore. But the real reason is: the discovery of oil. It happened about 4 years ago, which set off a scramble. District 6, of course, is massively empty land, and people were sent from Zansasi to see if the land was liveable. Banija's only district without a known native population. Yes, it bordered the massive rainforest, but that didn't mean people couldn't live there, right?

And while drilling, explorers found oil. That's what set off a scramble. PetroBan, Banija's national oil company, quickly swooped in and purchased rights to the land. They negotiated agreements with the alliance as a whole, with commitments to pay a portion of revenues to each of the five groups- the four native groups, as well as Mugishaland. And then, PetroBan began pushing for a formal political union between Banija and Njaza as a result. They said that their discovery would be 'much better protected under Banijan law', and Njaza couldn't handle things on its own.

That's where the idea started. But the impetus for a Union? Well, that will be answered in the next part of this series. But there's the history.

Sports: Banijans come home to the nation's capitol and crush Covelandia to wrest first place in their WBC Group away from them

BUSUKUMA, NATIONAL CAPITOL REGION- It's always good when the national baseball team comes to the capitol, right? Especially in these circumstances. After 9 matchdays(out of 30), the Banijans were sitting at just 5-4, two games behind Coveland(then 7-2) for first place in the group. We knew that we were going to have to fight, and scratch, and claw our way to where we thought we belonged, which was first place in the group. But this would be a great opportunity to do that. Covelandia have had a fantastic start to the tournament, yes. But they are unranked- meaning this is their first time going through the pressure cooker of the World Baseball Classic.

And with the games being held locally, fans in Banija's capitol showed out for this match. Three straight sellouts, and the energy brought a ton of noise and passion. "Look- sometimes it is hard to establish home field advantage in this sport, I understand that." Isaac Oladipo, the team's manager, told reporters. "But oh my.. The fans really knew that this was a big series, and they brought the energy. It felt like a playoff series- which, if you're playing the team at the top of the table, it can certainly feel like it is. Looking out, just seeing that sea of orange, hearing the fans roar and chant... Absolutely a great time. A special experience."

Game 1 featured Banija's ace on the mound, Xolile Gola. She's 1-0 to start the tournament, and the 35 year old has been absolutely dominant. Game 1, to start the Classic- 7 innings, 2 earned runs, and got the win. Her second start, she threw seven shutout innings against Eshialand, leaving the game up 4-0. Of course, she got a no decision- our bullpen absolutely blew it in the 8th inning, and she got a no decision(we won it in extras). So she was looking to continue her hot streak of her third consecutive strong start. She did just that, going 6 and 2/3s innings, 8 strikeouts, 5 hits, and a walk- with just 2 earned runs. Third consecutive quality start, second win of the tournament. Another elite performance that simply seemed pedestrian because of who was on the mound- and yet, she wasn't even the story.

How wasn't she the story? The story for the opening game of this series, were Banija's bats. We absolutely unloaded on them. After a quiet start to the game, this team exploded, and simply could not stop raking. We made them use 4 different pitchers in the third inning, as we tagged the then group leaders for eleven runs- a Banijan NT record for runs in an inning. Hell, our lefty, teenage first baseman, Gouta Rehana, homered twice in the inning- a solo shot to lead off the inning, and her second time around, a 2 run bomb. Our offense just utterly unloaded on them, and did not stop. It was a stunning 16-2 blowout win, that sent a message- just because Covelandia were top right now, it doesn't mean that we don't think we're the best team in this group.

Game 2 of the series was more of the same. While we didn't necessarily have an 11 run inning, we unloaded on them early, forcing them to pull their starter, John Smith, after just 1 and 1/3rd innings- where he allowed 6 earned runs. Ugonna Akachi featured with a 2 run homer in the first inning, but the back end of the Banijan lineup did all the damage in the second inning. When you're up that big that early, you just demoralize the opponents, and basically bury them before they have a chance to get going. Our own starting pitcher threw a complete game, with Kopa Mosego being the beneficiary of such a dominant hitting performance. A pair of excellent wins- which meant that the Banijans would have the chance to go for the series sweep, which would be our first of the tournament.

But we weren't just going to crush our way to victory, were we? Covelandia had gotten less than 4 combined innings from their starters, the first two games ending before they started. In game 3, we tried to jump on them early- but their starter navigated successfully, getting out of bases loaded jams in both the second and the third, allowing just one earned run in each. With it only being 2-0 after 3, Covelandia had a chance to start a comeback. A solo shot by their #3 hitter in the bottom of the 4th cut our lead in half, and in the top of the 6th, they took a lead against us for the first time in this three game set. A 2 out, 2 run double by their cleanup hitter against one of our middle relievers gave them the 3-2 lead, and the momentum.

But the bottom half of the sixth would prove to be their undoing. Their starter had thrown 103 pitches through 5- but remember, their pen was spent as well. Their manager wanted to squeeze one more inning, but could not. Back to back walks to our 8 and 9 hitters started the inning, and that starter was pulled, but it was too late. Atla Gadifele, leading off, laid down a perfect bunt down the first base line, to try and sac himself to put runners on 2nd and 3rd with just one out. But the Covelandian reliever dropped the ball as he picked it up- so everyone was safe. Bases loaded, nobody out. They got Moses Oneko to pop up to first base. 1 out. But Saddiq Xoosh was too strong- He hit a ground rule, 2 run double to the gap in left center, scoring two. 4-3 to Banija. They walked Akachi to create force outs everywhere, but a sac fly by Madongo Kiribata to deep center field allowed a fifth run to score.

All sorts of energy from the crowd after that. And that's all the Banijans needed, that 5-3 lead. While our bullpen has been shaky all Classic, they finally stood firm. Alanyo Matama pitched a shutout 7th inning(and got a hold), with Sebaga Atla throwing a 1-2-3 8th, while Oyella Lagum, after allowing a leadoff double, struck out the side to end the 9th. "Look- fantastic series, it feels great to get the sweep and reach the top of the table for the first time all tournament." Said the team's manager, Isaac Oladipo. "Now, it's time to build on this. It's only more difficult from here." Banija's next series will be a three game road trip to last place Canadian Dominion, who are currently 3-9.

by **TJUN-ia** » Sat Jan 21, 2023 12:15 pm

After our first road series ended in success, the Battin' Jaguars of TJUN-ia were 5-4 and certainly beginning to feel like a team that was heading in the right direction after the stop-start way this WBC started for the team. You could certainly feel that the momentum was heading in our direction and that the team was clicking in a way that many did hope for when this season began. Phillip Hellas-Verona wasn't assuming anything (of course) and he was still favouring the style of caution but with the first break on the horizon, many were starting to get their expectations tuned up as the games came and went.

Game 1 (CRB 7-2 TJU)
International Baseball made its much-awaited return to The Gardens of New Washington as The Diamond would play host to debutants and group leaders Caribbia and their Crabs (or Islanders, whichever you prefer). Jason McRae would start against Endúro Kalisir for Game 1 and things actually started quite poorly as back-to-back homers from Bon Pom (1st inning) and Ren Kauri (2nd) would make it 2-0 to the visitors quite quickly. We would try to make it back into the contest for the rest of the way and hope was sprung when Svetlana Mykvinich clawed one back in the 5th. But 5 would also be the number of runs we conceded in the 8th inning, with Cayo Perico (2-run) and Salero Fibólo (3-run) throwing daggers that forced Maddison "Missy" Jembembe out to play. We scored 1 more run, but it wouldn't matter. Not our night. At all.

Game 2 (CRB 0-11 TJU)
Gene Almac vs Ernesto Francisco would be the headline billing for Game 2...but this game turned into a fucking massacre as Almac showed his brilliance by way of a shutout of epic proportions. HRs would be the name of the game and in this regard, we certainly dealt with grenades:

Bottom 1st: Anastasia Mykvinich 3-run HR (3-0)
Bottom 1st: Stefan von Shültz 2-run HR (5-0)
Bottom 3rd: Svetlana Mykvinich 2-run HR (7-0)
Bottom 5th: Anastasia Mykvinich 2-run HR (9-0)
Bottom 7th: Palila Kalawai’a 2-run HR (11-0)

That last one was Kalawai'a's first-ever runs for the Battin' Jags, the first ever for a non-binary player, and that was just emotion in itself. In the end, we won 11-0 in a blowout and this series was going to a decider.

Game 3 (CRB 6-14 TJU)
Shin Suzuki and Manuel Leuren would start a decider that practically descended into chaos from the 6th inning onwards. It was so chaotic in fact that we need to bring another box score to the party because holy crap, we're gonna need it.

Bottom 1st: Santino Fenatti solo HR (CRB 0-1 TJU)
Top 3rd: Cayo Perico 2-run HR (CRB 2-1 TJU)
Top 4th: José Mesa via Milo Menner RBI (CRB 3-1 TJU)
Shin Suzuki was pulled by TJU and replaced by Yolande Sirapui
Bottom 6th: Yolande Sirapui 2-run HR (CRB 3-3 TJU)
Bottom 6th: Anastasia Mykvinich 3-run HR (CRB 3-6 TJU)
Manuel Leuren was pulled by CRB and replaced by Lirro Berg
Top 7th: Ren Kauri solo HR (CRB 4-6 TJU)
Top 8th: Lirro Berg via Bon Pom RBI (CRB 5-6 TJU)
Bottom 8th: Svetlana Mykvinich Grand Slam (CRB 5-10 TJU)
Lirro Berg was pulled by CRB and replaced by Carlson Ramírez
Bottom 8th: Joe Gregory Grand Slam (CRB 5-14 TJU)
Yolande Sirapui was pulled by TJU and replaced by Carlos Buena
Top 9th: Ren Kauri solo HR (CRB 6-14 TJU)

What a way to end this series. 14-6. 20 runs. This series was won in a barn burner. Wow.

As we enter this 1st break, we now lead this group at 7-5 thanks to H2H and boy, does it feel good. We will return on the road at Milk Island but for now, this team deserves a break. We all do. 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 W 2-1 (1st)
---------------------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

by **Ko-oren** » Sat Jan 21, 2023 12:44 pm

KOR South Season 4 Previews - Llamaphant Pro Baseball

Aviansola Admirals @ Naminaka Park (14500), Aviansola, Leleia
Aviansola, on Leleia, the Royal Island, lost its team for a while when the owner was pursuing bigger markets. For the LPB, they're back, hoping to pick up where they left off. The fans reluctantly and suspiciously are back for the boys in blue.
This is your club if you like underdogs, especially in this southern division. They're the only team trying to get Yoshiman, Aviansolan, Korean and Chinese-speaking Ko-orenites on board.
Prediction: Overall: 4 // Pitching: 3 / Fielding&Batting: 6 // Infield: 10 / Outfield: 3 / Starting pitchers: 5 / Bullpen: 3
Coaching Staff: Miyako Mita (f, 61) KOR
Fielding: C: Kanae (f) Hayashibe (19y)★★ - Infield: Vianol Sivurila (33y)★★★, Masatane Kanamoli (21y)★★★, Amand Gallois (31y)★★✩, Harmisjesin Dunaltinden (32y)★★ - Outfield: Zey Billings CMT (25y)★★✩, Chi-Yong Sop CMT (25y)★★★★✩, Akinari Tsutsumi (34y)★✩ / DH: Tadanari Amachi (20y)★★★✩
Pitching: Starters: Jeff Bitches QAS (y)★★✩, You Wassens (34y)★★✩, Santino Fennatti TJU (24y)★★★★, Xesus Medal (21y)★★✩, Jeremiah Dettmer CMT (31y)★★★ - Relievers: Daniel Peterson ETH (30y)★★★★, Tacaro Cevocalu (33y)★★★✩, Monroe Keating (35y)★✩, Sabuk Tepkusorenthen (20y)★✩, Daniel Peterson (30y)★★✩ - Closer: Ah-Rhee Go CMT (21y)★★★
Last season: 83-101, 4th in the South/10th in the Conference.

The Admirals have been a plaything for their owner for a while. From a move to Intermare after a bet (it was them or the Quarry moving to a new market) and flopping around there with few fans but decent results to moving back to Aviansola in time for the LPB but giving up a good deal of players and, maybe more importantly, respectability. The Southern division was rumoured to be the Generals' playground anyway, and the Admirals didn't look such a great club to sign with. And look at them now! Holding on to the good players they already had, aggressively dealing for players in the offseason, because they smelt blood. The Generals weren't good in LPB season 3 and might not recover in time for season 4. The Giants are only falling apart further. And the Silvers are coming from a deep depth. The South is wide open, and Aviansola realised it first - this is their chance to make it their division while the Generals are still figuring things out - they'll be back, but until then the division is light blue.

Picking very early - second overall - they took the biggest pro-ready talent on the board: 24-year old pitcher from TJUN-ia, Santino Fenatti. Pro-ready, because they're not here for success down the line. The second pick went for another pitcher, Xesus Basquez, a Finisterran. And then they selected designated hitter Amachi, recognising that was an easy edge to gain over the other teams, who haven't all gotten a specialist for the position yet. Add to that the deals they got: Peterson from the Dolphins, Dettmer from the Diamonds, and a pick in the Chromatik draft - with a first round pick of the Dolphins for season 5 still incoming.

Look at them now! The overall fourth club of the country, with huge quality injections at pitcher - Fennatti, Dettmer, Qasden's Jeff Bitches, as well as relievers Peterson, Cevocalu, and Ah-Rhee Go from Chromatika. That's not a bad list of starters and definitely not a bad bullpen - 5th and 3rd in the country if we believe the projections. The infield is dodgy but not bad, the outfield is amazing, mostly through Chi-Yong Sop. Give it another year and the bonus pick, and they'll be able to replace the three-to-four holes in the roster. But that's kind of overlooking the capability of the Admirals to do some real damage this season! They're clearly behind the Stars, Whales, and Dragons, but the South shouldn't give them too much trouble and then they can roll on into the playoffs. This is a surprise pick for your Ko-orenite conference champions!

Katashi Generals @ Katashi Dome (58000), Katashi, Katashi
The Katashi Generals - from 'capital' Katashi on Royal Island Leleia - are the perennial team to beat. They have more titles, they're older than almost every team, they have the biggest stadium, they've got it all.
This is your club if you just want to see a lot of wins, bandwagoning be damned.
Prediction: Overall: 5 // Pitching: 2 / Fielding&Batting: 7 // Infield: 1 / Outfield: 12 / Starting pitchers: 4 / Bullpen: 4
Coaching Staff: Nobusada Ose (59) KOR
Fielding: C: Shukishi Kashiwa (34y)★★✩ - Infield: Mateu Aldana (38y)★★★✩, Aki (f) Futara (21y)★★✩, Gregory Simons CMT (34y)★★★★✩, Katatake Gotou (35y)★★★ - Outfield: Ryozo Kikuchi (36y)★✩, Jasuviro Esumi (34y)★★★, Hannah Choe QUE (29y)★★ / DH: Videtake Aoyama (27y)★✩
Pitching: Starters: Dae-Wook Kim CMT (23y)★★★✩, Katsumi Kawai (32y)★★✩, Tovi Niva (28y)★★★, Jason McRae TJU (26y)★★★✩, Michael Reischauer QUE (23y)★★ - Relievers: Carla (f) McInnis SLL (34y)★★✩, Naoyuki Takewaki (20y)★★★, Atsuki Kotera (21y)★★★, Sanemitsu Murata (30y)★★, Habi Hoga (33y)★★★ - Closer: Teluvide Kamei (31y)★★✩
Last season: 99-85, 1st in the South/4th in the Conference. 3-0 loss to Echizen Dragons in the Divisional Series.

We expected the Generals to extend their domestic era dominance but then the Stars and Whales came through. The Generals have been the conductors of Ko-orenite club baseball and they were kind of supposed to stay that way, especially given the high expectations of the Katashi market. Things rarely last long in that city, be it success or careers, but when they're winning things can be extended a bit. With how the purple team won the South, Ose was in no trouble at all - but then they were kicked out of the divisional round by an upstart Dragons team, with there now being a legitimate threat in the north. That kind of erased Ose's credit. That, and the hype building in Aviansola puts all the pressure back on the team from the Dome...

Last season, the Generals dealt for Simons, of LPB s3 all-star fame. In the draft, they added TJUN-ian McRae, and later Aki Futura, one of the bigger infield talents who fell to round two because of the immense pitcher hype, and then reliever Takewaki in round 3. Later also finding Aoyama as a DH option, there's some minor roster turnover.

Aoyama doesn't seem like the right tool for the job, but otherwise this team looks very solid through and through. Definitely a contender for the division and possibly beyond. Simons already looks like one of the best in the league, and the Generals apparently have a knack for finding Chromatiks, because Kim also looks like on of the best. Aldana, McRae, Takewaki, and Kotera are a group of young-ish players that can keep the fun going for a few years. It hinges on what the division does: the Silvers don't seem to have the cash to match, but the Giants definitely do and they won't stay terrible forever, right? And then there's the Admirals, who have already figured out the LPB bonuses: they figured out how to address weaknesses through trading. It's maybe slightly overlooking the great work done in Katashi, who have the best infield in the conference and the second best combined pitching. A horrible outfield is holding them back, it seems...

Nitoya Silvers @ Twin Field (18000), Nitoya, Leleia
Nitoya, on Leleia, the Royal Island, are the team where all the hot new prospects hang out. Result-wise, they struggle to stand out versus the Giants and Generals, but some of the biggest in the business have their roots with the lovable Silvers. The ancient ballpark is another draw.
This is your club if you want to see all the good players before they go mainstream.
Prediction: Overall: 8 // Pitching: 10 / Fielding&Batting: 5 // Infield: 11 / Outfield: 4 / Starting pitchers: 11 / Bullpen: 7
Coaching Staff: Kiyohiko Akagi (56) KOR
Fielding: C: Jirokichi Ogiwara (21y)★★★ - Infield: Gasparo Lema (28y)★★, Hiroka Ryosuke DAS (25y)★★, Eikichi Matsuoka (19y)★★★✩, Fumiaki Fuchizaki (34y)★★★ - Outfield: Kava Jamana (28y)★★✩, Vítor Vasquez (31y)★★, Kellie (f) Wiley CMT (23y)★★★✩ / DH: Tamotsu Namioka (20y)★★★
Pitching: Starters: Nakazo Uranishi (34y)★★★✩, Ienaga Vineno (28y)★✩, Kijonori Nakama (33y)★★, Kyuichi Omori (32y)★✩, Kazuoki Nishikata (22y)★★✩ - Relievers: Ryūsei Sakurazawa (19y)★✩, Elethek Pargalgunden (20y)★★✩, Jasuvilo Hajakawa (27y)★✩, Ventura de Castro (26y)★★★★✩, Satoru Wakuri (27y)★★ - Closer: Tommy Kawasaki (32y)★★
Last season: 93-91, 2nd in the South/6th in the Conference.

Barely missing out on wildcard baseball, the Silvers can be a fun team in the mid-table given the resources they have. They pride themselves on scouting and so far that has paid off for them, though in the longer run they will keep getting overlooked without postseason success. Sure, within Ko-oren they can build a small legacy, but if you want to 'count' in SLL/SNL/CMT: you have to play postseason baseball to make it on to their TVs and with it, the TVs of the multiverse. We looked at their allround team and they outdid themselves. Well done!

They picked infielder Matsuoka with pick #7, then a catcher, Ogiwara, and lastly a DH, Namioka. They looked at the hype pitchers got and decided to zig when everyone zagged, and hoped to get batters for a fairer price. Pitchers were going at a premium, and the Silvers think they can cheat the system by going for any other position.

Matsuoka might not be the immediate improvement they hoped for: Ogiwara seems to offer at least the same upside, and the same goes for Namioka, despite them going rounds later. It seems there was a little bit of elite talent in the draft, and every pick after that was purely going by positional need - and the Silvers might well have guessed right. That said, they're still eighth in the projections, like last year, and they're looking to prove that they have gamed the system like last year as well. A somewhat uninspiring roster with a surprisingly good outfield - that's Wiley, Jamana, and then Namioka. Good plaeyrs they already had before the draft include Uranishi and De Castro, both pitchers, but this team needs a far bigger investment to try to keep their best players. This is an awful rotation, most of all. Vineno, Nakama, and Omori are barely fit for an LPB roster, but two years in, we're all still building.

Katashi Giants @ Maesaki Park (31250), Katashi, Katashi
The Katashi Giants - from 'capital' Katashi on Royal Island Leleia - are a huge team that just can't get a win when it matters, and they're forever the smaller version of the Generals for it.
This is your club if you want a likeable team from a big city, with lots of fans, that will still win plenty, but never wins quite enough.
Prediction: Overall: 11 // Pitching: 11 / Fielding&Batting: 8 // Infield: 3 / Outfield: 10 / Starting pitchers: 10 / Bullpen: 10
Coaching Staff: Ken 'Fujiwara' Itou (72) KOR
Fielding: C: Paulo Rodela (37y)★★✩ - Infield: Fred Hodgson BOL (31y)★★, Rei Himura (37y)★★★✩, Manoel Candia (29y)★★✩, Dodo Ritsushima (36y)★★★★ - Outfield: Joritoki Onaga (35y)★★, Suemoto Ishimaki (32y)★★, Sanae (f) Natsuka (21y)★★★✩ / DH: Mata Ogata (32y)★★
Pitching: Starters: Yatarō Namioka (18y)★★★✩, Suta Akija (32y)★★★, Rudolph Vocar-Dijo ZWZ (30y)★★✩, Sadatake Mijazaki (37y)★★, Fidel Aguiar (31y)★✩ - Relievers: Ernesto Vara (30y)★★, Sadaie Nawa (28y)★✩, Vera (f) Mane CMT (21y)★★★✩, Yoshitake Nakada (28y)★★, Sanemichi Kikuchi (31y)★✩ - Closer: Fabio Paul SNL (33y)★★
Last season: 84-100, 3rd in the South/9th in the Conference.

The Giants, what else needs to be said? The smaller team to the Generals - once they existed at the same level, but contrast the purple team's 6 historical titles to the Giants' zero and the fact that the Maesaki team had made the Ko-orenite domestic final a few times - and lost all of them - kind of says enough. This is not a futile team, but they're trying. That said, the Giants have deep pockets and looking at this very old roster, there's a real chance to create something beautiful afterwards. Given Rodela (37), Ritsushima (36), Himura (37), and Onaga (35), and they're all pretty good players that will be difficult to follow up with talent that's at least as good, mind you, they'll have a good few roster spots to fill after all's said and done. Among the pitchers, it's just Mijazaki and maybe that's for the better that he's replaced. The problem is that no group is universally good, so they're always playing to their strengths and weaknesses of that day.

They tried to cover the biggest problems with the third overall pick, and picked outfielder Natsuka. Sanae had entered the draft with genuine hype and ended up the only non-pitcher in the top five picks. It was a case of need, but Natsuka is a genuinely big talent. The second pick was voided because of an earlier trade, and the Chromatik Rhonin picked instead of them. Then they had a third round pick: pitcher Namioka, who immediately turned out to be the best they have.

And now we're looking at a not so very good roster. Like every roster, there are individual bright spots: Ritsushima, Namioka, Mane, but there's a lot of aging veterans and players that were signed for more hype than they seem to be worth. A pretty good infield can't mask what's going on elsewhere in the group.

by **Super-Llamaland** » Sat Jan 21, 2023 2:27 pm

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 14

The Renaissance, down 3-2, will now need to win two games in a row if they want to advance. Their opponent was once the most feared in the country, home to the “Core Four” of Natalie Wu, Hector Rinaldi, Markus Wright, and Carsten Riviera - and later, Schiltz superstar Jeff Fitzhugh. And while the modern Cyclones don’t strike as much fear into opponents’ hearts, it’s still a daunting challenge. But the bullpen is not fazed.

Erik McGuire: “Yeah, of course they’re good - Corbin’s a good hitter, Schuster is still tearing up the basepaths, and they’ve got big bats in Maxx and Werner - but I’m not worried.”

Nate Peterson: “We literally had a better record than them this year. Even without all the injury shit they went through, we’ve gotta be the favorites.”

Kathryn Riggins: “Everyone left at this stage of the playoffs is going to be a great team who’s seen some shit. That applies to them - but it also applies to us.”

Last season, the Renaissance had the worst bullpen in the league, with headliners Urkyen Bharadhwaj and Eliza Guo both struggling. Both have inconveniently regained their former form with Xingcheng’s playoff rivals, the former with the A’s and the latter with the Cyclones, but everyone still agrees that the clearout was necessary. Riggins, Kathrine Peterson, and McGuire were all free-agency replacements, while the team also reached for young fireballer Nate Peterson in the draft. But whether or not the bullpen is fazed ends up not really mattering in Game Six, though, as the Renaissance welcome the Cyclones to their home by punching the title favorites in the mouth. The score is 3-0 by the end of the first…

Swung on and driven into deep right field! This one’s got a chance…it’s off the wall as the ball caroms to the side! Niemi will score! Huang comes around to score! Werner digs it out of the corner and fires the relay, but Henry will score! And Nicolas Perez clears the bases with a double, as the first four runners have all reached against April Bendtner!

...and by the midpoint of the game, the Renaissance have extended their lead to five runs. The final score: Renaissance 8, Cyclones 2. Now, the Cyclones were the one on the back foot, despite finally hitting their stride with wins over both of their hated divisional rivals. And the Renaissance - the Renaissance! - were one road win away from becoming Llamanean champions. Game seven begins similarly to game six, as Masorka Award winner Maike Bookmer is exhausted after two weeks of starting on short rest. But a three-run fourth puts the Cyclones back in it and sends the fans onto their feet. And the seventh inning threatens to undo all the hard work the Renaissance spent to claw their way back into the series.

The payoff pitch to Jenna Schuster…sliced down the right-field line, and that’ll score two! Campazzo around to score, and Terry Myers is going to join him! Schuster speeds to second and pops in ahead of the throw from Barker, while Armstrong heads to third! And with just one out in the inning, the Cyclones have taken the lead, and have put two more runners in scoring position!

After an intentional walk, MacRaun sends on McGuire to face the left-handed Ivy Werner. If the veteran reliever slips, the Renaissance could be down by three or four runs heading into the series’ final frames. The commentators publicly question her decision to rely on the aging middle reliever instead of a arm with more juice left in the tank. Two pitches later, they’re proven wrong.

Werner swings at it…chopper goes the other way, 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!

With the crisis averted, the Renaissance have managed to stem the bleeding, although the Cyclones remain up. But an inning and a half later, the Cyclones once again learn why you can’t let Xingcheng stay within a run, as Eliza Guo sends a gift her old team’s way:

The Renaissance down to their final two outs, a position they’ve been in many times before…Perez turns on the fastball and sends it down the right-field line, that one’s going to tie it! It’s once again Nicolas Perez with the home run, and once again the Renaissance who rally from behind to tie the game in the bottom of the ninth! Renaissance Arena is exploding with noise here, as Xingcheng’s bid for their first-ever national title stays alive!

And an inning after that, after Riggins narrowly escapes a tenth-inning jam, the Xingcheng Renaissance - for the first time in their checkered history - are Llamanean champions.

”Was that a strike?”
“Yeah, Jeff. Inside corner, I guess?”
“Aw, fuck off. He’s down 1-2, then?”
“Yeah, but he’s got this, dude. Relax.”
“(laughs) it’s game fuckin’ seven, Yousuf-”
crack
“That dropping?”
“Hell yeah, it’s dropping!”
“COME ON, ROBIQUET! GO, GO, GO!”
“HE’S IN!”
“LET’S FUCKING GET IT! YEAHHHHHHH!”

The drama of the SLLCS draws a lot of eyeballs, but there’s a fog of meaninglessness that permeates over the occasion. Across the strait, the Newport Dolphins are taking no prisoners, leading many to dub their SNLCS victory over Walstreim the “real Esportiva Series.” They have won a record-setting 123 games in the regular season, and have faced little trouble in the playoffs as they continue to steamroll everyone that faces them.

”The question everyone is asking today…can the Renaissance push the Dolphins to six?”

“The Newport Dolphins, the ex-champions who came into this season on the warpath, are just eight wins short of winning their second LPB title in just three seasons of the combined league..”

“Xingcheng have done some great things this season, and I loved how they came from 2-1 or 3-1 down in the earlier rounds…but just look at the collection of talent these guys have assembled. Ryan Hunter. Haakon Kalberg. Tyson Long. Brad Moore. Kendra Annovar. I mean, how does anyone compete with that?”

So it’s no surprise that just week later, the Renaissance is down 2-0 in the series and 5-0 in Game Three as it enters the bottom of the ninth. The run, it seems, has ended. With the home fans starting to trickle out of Renaissance Park to beat traffic after a devastating two-plus games, everyone seems to know it. But what a magical time it’s been on Super-Llamaland’s southwestern coast. As Jacinta MacRaun says to her team after Game Two,

This has been a really beautiful run, you guys. I don’t think we need a Multiverse Series to confirm that - and it’d take a miracle now for us to get there. But if anything, it’d almost feel cheap if we just kept overcoming these huge deficits. So you guys just go out there and plugging at it, and win or lose, we’ve already made Xingcheng proud.

As motivational speeches, it’s not exactly inspiring. But what she says is true - for the long-suffering fans of Xingcheng, the Renaissance have already done more than enough.

by **Ranoria** » Sun Jan 22, 2023 9:19 pm

Jesse Griffith’s final season for the Cincinnati Warbirds of the Federation of Ranorian Baseball - Game 4 in a best 5 championship series

And here he is, the reigning MVP of the Federation of Ranorian Baseball. I’ve never seen a pitcher set someone up like this. One of the better sluggers in the world, and here in the Federation, in a tie game, he has bases loaded with a chance to win a championship.

Strike 1! High and inside fastball.

Ball. This closer, York, has put a few balls in the dirt this season, he’ll have to dig deep to make this happen.

Ball. That one nearly hit Griffith.

Ball- and now, one more pitch gone wrong and this series is over.

Strike 2! Griffith pulls back on a nasty curveball.

Here we go. Bases loaded. Two outs.

Whammy!!!

And it’s gone! Gone forever! Jesse Griffith has done it! A grand slam walkoff to cap off an MVP season for the Warbirds’ superstar, and a storybook ending to what many are saying will be his last season in the Federation.

And looking at the replay here, that ball was well outside the box, wow. Griffith decided that rather than take the anticlimactic walk, he’ll swing for the fences and get the glory that comes with it. What a kid.

Krauts clubhouse following practice

Vincent Veltrone wiped his sweat-covered face as he sat down, hearing the distinctive and repetitive ding of Jesse Griffith hammering away in the batting cages. “It’s absurd. Jesse always trains like a madman even though he’s already a protege. He must be really starving for victory.”

“No, trust me, it’s nowhere near that simple.” Tristen Feng, a veteran and mentor to Jesse Griffith during their shared time with Ranoria’s Cincinnati Warbirds, chimed in. “It’s not about winning, or even doing whatever it takes, or anything like that. For him, being one of the best players in the world is almost as natural as breathing. Victory isn’t really something he goes looking for. Ever since he really came into his own, it’s more of a basic bodily function, if that makes sense.”

Veltrone flopped down on a couch across from the old timer and raised an eyebrow. “…no.”

“Thing is, he believes he’s the best power hitter in the world. And in my eyes, you can’t be the best tater chef in the world unless you’re also the world’s biggest diva. Even if he doesn’t view it this way, that mindset, you have to be willing to wrest that dream from hundreds of other ‘protégés’ as you call them, a solitary hero. He’ll say he just wants to win, and in his mind he believes it. But in big moments it’s his heart that takes over. I saw it myself, in the final game of the Federation Series. That superhero of ours stepped up to the plate at the bottom of the ninth with two outs, full count, bases loaded, tie game. Him against the closer. Any sane person would take the walk on a pitch that was way outside. You’re guaranteed to score. The championship, the hopes of a city, all riding on him - but Jesse? Only an insane person would swing at that pitch with no hesitation. Never forget, in his mind he’s selfless, but in his heart, he’s the spearhead, he’s the star of this team. And he lives only for those glorious moments with the weight of a nation’s dreams on his back.”

Feng leaned back and shrugged, “But hey, it worked out for us in the end.”

works? · by **Abanhfleft** » Mon Jan 23, 2023 8:32 am

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

NOW COMES THE TRUE TEST OF OUR METTLE

WRITING FROM EFFELENENDRO CITY, EFFELENENDRO - Well, it’s now official: we are no longer the best team in Group A. Only by a small margin of runs though, but considering who we’ve got on our plates next, I’ll take every morsel of comfort that I can get while I still can. We definitely won’t be getting much comfort against South Newlandia, I can tell you all that much already. Then again, considering that we might have been the first team to give them a proper fight in the previous World Baseball Classic, maybe there’s still some hope for us. But I’m not really counting on it though. This is still the defending WBC champion we’re talking about here. Getting two games against them in the playoffs is one thing, but it’s an entirely different thing in the group stage. I really don’t mean to be a party pooper, but I’m just doing my bit to make sure that we’re not utterly disappointed when we walk away from this coming series against the Elephants with nothing but three big fat Ls. Maybe one W, but I’m not really expecting much more than that. There, I said it. It’s one thing to play against Ko-oren, but it’s an entirely different thing to play against South Newlandia.

But once again, I’m getting a little bit too far ahead of myself. How did we even get to this position in the first place? Well, it’s quite simple, really. Qasden managed to win a game in our first series against them, and because of that, the Ellies have leapfrogged over us into first place on run differential. Yeah, it’s not really the doomsday scenario that I made it out to be in the first place, is it? Again, I’m just trying to manage expectations. We’ve been in this position before, going on a good start in the Classic only to falter once we’re within sight of the finish line. This is usually the point in the campaign when things start to go wrong for us, so you can’t blame me for trying to let everyone down easy now. We managed to see things through in Drawkland previously, but that is still no guarantee that this is going to be a regular thing for us now. We all thought we were going to finally become a contender during those rare instances that we managed to make it out of the group stage, and they all turned out to be false dawns. Again, I’m sorry for being an absolute downer, but that’s only because prior experience has taught me not to expect big things after one relatively successful Classic. Once we make a habit of winning and making deep playoff runs in the WBC, then maybe we can talk.

Sorry for that rant. I just had to get it off my chest. I’ve been thinking about that for some time now and I just wanted to know if there were others out there who felt the same way. But enough about my own rantings and ravings; let’s talk some baseball! Finally, I can hear you guys saying from wherever you are. I know that you don’t really care much for my own personal ramblings when it’s only tangentially related to the baseball games that actually happened so I’m going to set all of those aside now to focus on our series against Qasden. The Vans may have been unranked in baseball these days but their prior history with us in other sports means that they’ve got the privilege of playing us at the National Baseball Stadium in Effelenendro. We don’t call it the Cathedral of Baseball for nothing, but in recent years we haven’t had a lot of good memories in that place when it comes to the Abanhfleft Revolution. Even in this very Classic, we still had that surprise win on the part of Imperial Haiti to keep us on our toes, and as we were about to find out, Qasden were going to be no different from the Haitians.

I mean, we expected Qasden to be much better at this whole baseball thing simply because we know that they’ve been on the sporting scene for quite some time now. Thus it was really no surprise at all that they managed to take one game from us in this series even if we did emerge as the overall winners. And they also gave us a heck of a fight in the games that we did win, as evidenced by our tight victory over the Vans in Game 1. To be fair to our own lads though, we did look like we had the situation locked down in the first six or seven innings. We will not mention the home run that Qasden scored at the top of the third inning to open the scoring. What we will talk about is the fact that after that small initial setback, we went back and got the job done. It didn’t kick off immediately though; we had to wait until the fifth inning for the Revolution to finally respond to that shot across the bow from Qasden. And you can basically qualify that response as being a broadside straight into the hull of the Vans because they basically were not able to mount a response until the ninth and final inning, and even though they got a grand slam then, it still wasn’t enough to overturn the score. That being said, we all know that there was no way in hell that Pete Langford was going to give up a grand slam if he was still pitching for us.

But now let’s get to the absolutely shocking result of this series, Game 2 of Abanhfleft versus Qasden. Abanhfleft looked like they had this game under control after 3 runs in the first three innings thanks to Antonio Myles batting himself and Donald Edwards home, followed by a Maël Corneau homer in the third. Who would have known that those were going to be the only runs that we were going to end up scoring in the second game? Certainly not us, that’s for sure. The Revolution were not the kind of team to shoot all of their shots in the first third of a game of baseball, but it would appear that that was indeed the case in this particular match. Usually our boys are still capable of getting a couple of runs here and there but in this game, Qasden just shut us out after the first three innings. The Vans were catching good hits that would have normally resulted in at least one or two runs any other day, but on this day, they were simply the better team. Kurtis Lingenfelter and his men aren’t even at fault for this; luck simply just wasn’t on their side on that day. But there’s really no point dwelling on that so everyone just moved on and refocused on the third and final game of the series, the game that would decide who would actually win this series overall.

I’m not gonna lie, Game 3 of our series against Qasden was a bit of a slow burner. There were no exciting double plays or grand slams in this game. It was just a matter of both teams going about their business and doing what they needed to do in order to claim victory. I wouldn’t say that either team was only putting in the bare minimum because that’s just simply not true. Both Abanhfleft and Qasden were giving their all in this game; it was just that the baseball gods were not letting either team play to their fullest. The fairest way to describe this game would be that it was a game that was played, and that it was one of the baseball games of all time. I liked the part where Booker Draves said, “It’s baseballing time,” and he proceeded to play baseball all over the diamond. But all kidding aside, this game is not going to go down as an all-time classic. It really was just a game of baseball that happened, and the end result of it was that Abanhfleft won both the game itself and the greater series. But I wasn’t joking about the Booker Draves part because, while he didn’t necessarily say, “It’s baseballing time,” he was still responsible for the winning home run in the bottom of the eighth inning. It truly was one of the baseballing moments of all time.

So that’s our home series against Qasden done and over with. It is now time for us to face the music as we prepare for the Elephants at their own turf. It was never going to be an easy task no matter where we were in the group standings, but the stakes are of course that much higher now that we’re within striking distance of the defending champions. We want to keep ourselves as close to these guys as possible, and so far we’ve done exactly that. We’ve had a few stumbles here and there, but they’ve also stumbled a little bit. Imperial Haiti pulled a sneaky one on the Ellies, didn’t they? You know, I really thought that Imperial Haiti would just be yet another “one and done” team that just shows up for the competition because they made it in and then doesn’t put in more than the bare minimum of effort. But the Haitians really look like they’re starting to come into their own, and though I don’t think they’re going to be moving forward in the standings anytime soon, at least they’ll have something of a base to stand on if they finally decide to take this baseball thing seriously. Meanwhile, we’ve got the South Newlandia Elephants on our plate, and you can be sure as hell that Kurtis Lingenfelter and company are taking this very, very seriously. This is the Armored Dinner Jacket saying ciao, peace. Catch you in my next post.

by **Eshialand** » Mon Jan 23, 2023 9:54 am

Just Spitballing
Canadian Dominion 2 - 3 Eshialand
Canadian Dominion 4 - 6 Eshialand
Canadian Dominion 6 - 5 Eshialand

"So... why have we been called into this meeting again?" an older man on the Eshian Baseball Association Board of Directors asked.
"Well, I've got some great news and some kinda difficult news..." Jérôme Lafontaine replied. "The good news is that we were able to secure the funding we need to continue operations for the 2026 season.

Before Lafontaine could even finish his sentence, everyone in the room started cheering. He was visibly annoyed at this, as the elated members of the board weren't letting him get to the difficult news that really needed to be heard.

"The-- the-- CAN YOU ALL JUST SHUT UP?" The room fell silent. "Thank you... the bad news is that we're going to have to be 100% sustainable by 2027. We need to turn this sinking ship around, and fast. Does anyone have any ideas whatsoever as to how we can stop this financial bleed?

There were no ideas at all. The room was so quiet, you could hear a pin drop.

"Anyone who comes up with a good strategy that ends up working will receive a 10% end of year bonus from my personal funds!"

This caused a ruckus, as everybody in the room wanted a cut of that money. There was much murmuring amongst one another, before all of them turned towards Jérôme and started speaking at the same time.

"One at a time please? I can't understand a damned word you all are saying right now!"

"What about a team for Aleirave?" a middle-aged woman seated across from Lafontaine asked. "Maybe some people there might want their own team?"
"Absolutely not. For one, there's absolutely no money to be had there, and for two, we'd have to add another team to maintain balance, and we definitely can't afford two expansion teams on the budget we have."

"Increase marketing?" the older gentleman from before asked.
"Gonna need you to be more specific there, increasing marketing is kinda general."
"Well, erm..."
"I'll come back to you. Next?"

"Lengthening the season from 36 games to 54?" A young man in the far corner asked. "It'd be 50% more money for only about 25% extra cost..."
"See that's an interesting idea. Not entirely sure if it'll be worth it in the end, but I like where it's going and I would appreciate hearing more ideas like these."

"Could we partner with national TV networks to ensure that our games get more airtime than LPB?" a portly man nearby Lafontaine suggested.
"Convincing the TV networks to show our... admittedly lower-quality games could be a really tough sell, but it'll be the sell we need. Good idea Perkins, this is the thinking we need on this board."

"Oh, I figured it out!" The gentleman who asked about marketing said.
"Go ahead..."
"Social media marketing! I don't know too much about this stuff, but my grandson tells me that social media is the future of marketing! We can do so much with it, you don't even--"
"Social media has been the future for the past 10 years now, but you're right, we could and should definitely be stepping up out twii.tur game, it's low-cost and super duper effective. Something tells me you'll be getting that bonus, McGriff!"

This brainstorming session continued on into the night, with the ideas getting... let's just say progressively worse after that one. The highlight of the evening was when a dumb, blond, stuck-up young man who definitely lived off his parents' trust fund suggested that complicated firework shows involving circus animals would be a good idea worth investing in. Yeah, sure.

Only time would tell if any of the ideas from the brainstorming meeting would be any good or would save the Association. One thing was for sure though, and that is that the session produced some decent ideas that would give the EBA a fighting chance in a very cruel world.

by **Drawkland** » Mon Jan 23, 2023 1:56 pm

It was the top of the 14th inning in Drawk City.

For 13.2 innings, the Drawkian pitching had been excellent. Bruce Moore only allowed 2 runs, and with his soft-throwing knuckleball-centric arsenal, he was able to pitch all the way into the tenth inning. By the inclusion of a tenth inning, however, you could assume that Moore didn't exactly get the run support he was hoping for. Zorinitiee, despite fielding a roster of essentially nameless players, had a wily pitcher start the game who managed to keep the Corps bats at bay enough to earn a quality start.

The billing of the matchup perhaps undersold the importance of the game. Zorinitiee was a new and unranked squad, but they'd managed to win games against top 20 opposition in Tikariot and Quebec (two wins against the former, in fact). This matchup was their chance to stick it to the group leaders in Drawkland by preventing the sweep. Meanwhile, the Base Corps had swept every opponent that wasn't Quebec, and they'd won every series closer thus far. A win here could pay extra dividends down the road.

Drawkland's issue in this series was with the offense. Zorinitiee couldn't muster more than 2 runs a game in the series, but excluding a smell-blood inning late in Game 1, the Corps hadn't put up more than 2 runs in a single inning all series. This was the usual difficulty for the Base Corps: a lineup that's excellent on paper but has trouble putting it all together over the course of an entire Classic. At least this time, the pitching was solid enough to make up for the middling run production. They were helped by having two deep-pitching starters preventing the bullpen from having to put in a lot of work. That is, until this one went to extras.

After the top of the lineup went down in order in the bottom of the tenth, first-year manager Glenn Sutton seemed to anticipate that this contest was liable to last several more innings. He called for the rookie long reliever Elly Jacobs out of the pen, and she put in 3.1 innings of good work on the mound. As Sutton predicted, the offense had stayed flat, with the game still tied at 2 going into the 14th inning. Elly got the first out, but surrendered a double down the third base line on the very next pitch. Sutton hooked her and put in Jack West to hopefully keep the game tied. Jack forced a pop out, now just one away from getting away unscathed.

In center field, Lane Kavana was beginning to get a little annoyed. This game had gone on too long, and with the sun beginning to set in Drawk City, it was clear that if it went on any longer he was going to lose most of his night. The tie game was not for lack of trying: he was 3 for 5 with a walk, and his two-out RBI double in the 5th inning is what kept the game knotted at 2. Whenever he got on base he wasn't knocked home, and all his deep shots fell agonizingly short of the wall. For the most part, the rest of the lineup had gone silent (ignoring the Franky Jones homer in the 2nd inning, which was also Franky's only hit of the night). As good as Lane was, he couldn't do goddamn everything. Or could he?

Jack West pulled into the stretch, and Lane's focus snapped back to the plate. It was Zorinitiee's cleanup hitter, the same one who hit a homer in the fifth inning. With a runner in scoring position and two outs, he was liable to take a big hack. Jack fired the pitch, and the batter indeed took a huge swing. The pop was loud, hitting Lane's ears in deep center a split second after the ball rocketed off the bat.

Shit. Lane immediately turned his shoulder and ran to his left, where the ball appeared to be traveling. He shot a quick peek at the wall behind him, and immediately shifted into the next gear once he realized where the ball was headed. The ball seemed to be streaking towards "The Seam,"* a quirky spot in the outfield wall of Hydrogen Cyanide Field. Lane had played here long enough to know this was big trouble. If he played it safe by waiting for the ball to bounce, the runner would score for sure, and that's if the ball didn't leave the yard entirely. He had to catch this in the air to keep the game tied. Of course, if he missed, that ball would bounce behind his back and possibly give the batter a chance to round the bases before they could get the ball back to the infield.

All these thoughts and calculations shot through Lane's brain in the space of a second as he streaked towards the Seam. Thankfully the ball seemed to be losing steam, it wasn't going to clear the wall easily, but it was going to be close. As the stadium collectively held their breath (or screamed loudly in protest), Lane had just enough room to time his jump. He leapt into the air, twisting slightly so it would be his back slamming into the wall rather than his shoulder.

Thwack! The ball hit Lane's glove a split second before he slammed into the wall of the Seam and tumbled forward into the warning track. A second later to catch his breath and keep the crowd waiting, he defiantly lifted his glove in the air, ball safely tucked in the pocket. Out number three, crisis averted, crowd cheering, it was time to get off the damn field again.

There was some good news going into the bottom of the 14th: at least the Base Corps had the top of the lineup due to bat that inning. Aaron Frost dug into the batter's box, Abram Kavana starting swinging in the on deck circle, and Lane Kavana stood at the top of the steps in the hole. He was hoping at least one of Aaron or Abram could get on base so he could focus on getting a simple base hit to pass the baton or maybe get the winning RBI. Although Lane was mostly known for his incredible power, he found most of his joy in strategic and location-based hitting, waiting for the pitcher to give him the pitch they didn't know he wanted.

It seemed that it was not to be, however. Aaron took a big hack on a 3-1 count, which fell harmlessly into the right fielder's glove a couple yards from the warning track. As his little brother moved to the plate, Lane turned to his former teammate Roger Madison, who was now the hitting coach for the Corps.

"Do I have to be the man tonight?" Lane asked with a sigh. Roger raised his eyebrow and smirked, but he didn't respond. Lane walked a few feet over to the on-deck circle, where he weighted his bat and started taking practice swings.

Abram did not have a good at-bat, quickly going down 0-2. He managed to pull it back to 2-2, but a nasty inside pitch got him going down swinging. Two outs, and now it was time for Lane Kavana to bat. As Abram took his final swing to the crowd's chagrin, Lane once again turned to the dugout.

"Do I have to be the man tonight?!" He asked again, this time loud enough for the whole dugout and part of the crowd nearby to hear. Most of the team averted their gaze or said nothing.

"Go ahead, assmunch." Abram shot back as he passed his brother on the way to the dugout. There was more than a hint of bitterness in his voice, but Lane knew it was just anger from striking out.

"Fine." Lane lifted his arms in a half-shrug, then de-weighted his bat and headed to the left-handed batters box to face the right handed pitcher.

He settled in the box, digging his feet in for his relatively wide stance, slightly rotating his hips in a well-rehearsed routine to prepare for the AB. A simple base hit wouldn't be enough tonight, and his intentional attempts at a home run earlier in the game hadn't worked out. In this case, the simplest approach was going to have to get the job done.

First fastball I can touch gets blasted, Lane thought to himself, and he waited patiently for the pitcher to offer.

First pitch was a fastball, but it was up at the neck. Lane Kavana was an aggressive hitter, no doubt, but he knew when to lay off. Ball one.

Second pitch was a changeup, low and outside. Lane took it, but it just caught the corner. An acceptable loss, but it was still strike one.

Third pitch, the pitcher decided to come inside with a fastball. He missed down and in. Crack.

The swing was violent, and the ball ran right into the sweet spot of the bat. Never miss down and in to a lefty, especially if that lefty has a couple home run derby trophies sitting in his closet. The ball soared into the Drawk City evening, and Lane's bat soared twenty feet away as he flicked it following the backswing.

As (theoretically) all of Drawkland cheered to celebrate the walkoff home run, Lane grimaced to himself coming around second. Tonight would be a time to celebrate, but he knew that he got lucky with a mistake pitch. This level of production couldn't stick forever. He had two ABs in extra innings before this and got nothing, after all.

At least he knew the team appreciated the lift. Lane rounded third and couldn't help but break into a grin as he saw the Base Corps surrounding home plate, with drink coolers, bubblegum, and broomsticks in hand.

A win's a win, right?

by **South Newlandia** » Mon Jan 23, 2023 5:00 pm

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 3

SNL South

Ratzupalfu Rhinos

Offseason Movements:
It was certainly a surprise in the moment, but cumulatively, the Malidridad Mariners departing their home stadium was in the air. They had only moved into their Malidridad home a few seasons ago, and struggled to really draw fans in the small market. They also struggled to play any decent baseball, being the only team that never had a winning season in the modern era of South Newlandian baseball; now moving into their third location in that time surely doesn’t help matters. Malidridad proved to be too small and isolated to draw enough fans on a consistent basis to support an LPB team.
At the same time, there were multiple South Newlandian cities trying to draw an LPB team, and chief among them was Ratzupalfu, one of the biggest cities in the country. They had lost their baseball team, also named Ratzupalfu Rhinos, when the SNBL made four teams redundant in the wake of Llamaphant Pro Baseball. Nevertheless, they constructed a new stadium, the Ratzupalfu Dome, featuring an impressive 25,000 seats, making it the second-biggest in the country.
It was enough to serve as a bargaining chip to lure the hapless Mariners to move into the much bigger market. In fact, Ratzupalfu is one of the more well-known South Newlandian cities thanks to the NSCF team from here, the Egrets – polls around the multiverse show that Ratzupalfu clocks in at third nationwide, behind only Elephant Valley and Newport, which should also increase TV viewership, a major source of income for the South Newlandian teams. All of that aside, the team still exists, with the Rhinos inheriting all the Mariners assets – including, interestingly, their spot in the SNL South, despite being further north than a couple Central teams.
Unfortunately, the Rhinos had to deal with one major departure early on – First Baseman/Designated Hitter and former Rookie of the Season winner Nolan Ramsey departed the team, signing a free agency contract with the Felswyr Fire. Beside Ramsey, the Rhinos would also be without two more role players, namely Llamanean Left Fielder Justin Tucker, who joined the Furune Bees, and Jason Valbuena, their journeyman shortstop, who signed with the Dolphins.
There were good news, too, with the Rhinos’ new location and big stadium giving them the assets to lure big players to the largely forgotten franchise. In fact, they were able to sign three big stars – for one, Elephant Ben Gonzalo will be a big upgrade for the starting rotation. From Zwangzug, the team lured shortstop Atori Cragun, an international player for the WBC title-contenders, and they also added a second baseman right next to Atori in Fleftic Cedric Colon. The international player from Abanhfleft will also add a much-needed left-handed bat in the lineup.

Draft: (Position: 10)
The Rhinos also inherited the Mariners decent draft position, and decided to go for a pitcher with the 10th-overall pick. It was quite surprising that Newlandian right-hander Melissa Silvestri had fallen as far as she had; most people expected the 18-year-old to go with a single-digit pick. She’s definitely still a very raw with her craft, and her off-speed pitches will need some work, but the upside is definitely there.
In the second round, Ratzupalfu went for a bat, selecting Newlandian Left Fielder Kilian Hansen 34th overall. In many ways, he’s the opposite of Silvestri, being already 24; but his power still gives him good upside that he could apply in the LPB.
They ended up tripling up on Newlandian talent, picking Maryam Barnes in the third round; the second basewoman is expected to mostly provide some infield depth for the team.

Outlook:
Banijan Coach Addo Jassey, in his second season with the club, certainly has a very interesting team to work with. In the pitching rotation, they have two aces. First, Lion Xolile Gola, the ace of Banija, and her four-pitch mix, and second, newly added Elephant Ben Gonzalo. After that, there’s a decent drop-off, but Lio Günther should hopefully continue to figure things out in season two, and become a bit less wild on the mound.
The bullpen is dependent on Elephant Dhruv Webber. There’s a few interesting pieces; maybe Silvestri can add some value as a young rookie out of the bullpen, maybe Frank Chavez continues to punch above his weight, maybe Divyansh Thakur manages to not give up all the home runs in season two. Generally, if you see just a single country in an entire depth chart, it’s a problem; but with any luck, it won’t be enough to sink the team.
Luigi Kelley at catcher is not really a player you’re going to be willing to stick with long-term, but as a defensive catcher, he isn’t completely atrocious. Fortunately, he has tremendous amounts of talent around him in the infield; it might be one of the best in Llamaphant Pro Baseball, with four national team players from four different nations. There’s Malik Soley of Banija at first base in what will likely be his final season of professional baseball, but he’s still got it – he’s the reigning MVP, after all. At second and short, the team has the previously mentioned new additions in Fleftic Colon and Zwangzugian Cragun. At third base, the team still has Hugo Brock, the (now former) Elephant, so clearly, lots of talent to go around there.
The outfield also features plenty of talent, with Joanna Adoyo as the centerpiece in Center Field, another Banijan Lion, with her sure-handed glove and quick first step in the outfield. Around her, the team has a trio of outfield options; former 7th-overall pick Lewis Hunter will likely be the most flexible piece, while also being a great defender. Aaron Lewis, who was a very late pickup the previous season, but has earned himself a second look with clutch production; and rookie Kilian Hansen will slot in either Left or as Designated Hitter.
That’s not even getting into the depth of the team yet; with Elephants infielder Jack Goodson likely the best player in LPB without a consistent roster spot. Calling him a bench player would be disingenuous; he’s likely to play 140+ games, whether it is giving any of the other infielders a night off, or even slotting in as DH, or pinch-hitting/-running/-defending. It remains to be seen whether he wants to be a 6th-man in the long term, but for now, this will give the Rhinos a great boost over a 184-game schedule. The team even has further decent bench options, namely rookie 2B Barnes and Center Fielder Emily Crater of Ethane.
The pieces are certainly there, especially in the field; it’s up to coach Addo Jassey to create a cohesive unit out of them in the new environment. Can this team finally break the sub-.500 curse, maybe even contend for the playoffs, or will the bad luck follow them to Ratzupalfu?

St. Riecarn Saints

Offseason Movements:
The St. Riecarn Saints have struggled to find their footing the LPB era. Despite bringing in an experienced coach, Quebecois Dana Hussel, the Saints have struggled to contend in the playoff race, despite the fact that drafting really wasn’t the issue for them. For this season, the Saints are finally hoping to contend in the SNL South – as one of the only two teams in South Newlandian baseball with no modern-era division wins to their name, they’re finally hoping to end that streak; and they turned over significant parts of their roster hoping to make it happen.
The departures were mostly players that won’t be missed too badly – relievers Raphael Boyer and Moriyama Nanako will definitely be missed, as they signed with the Pilots and Wanderers respectively. They also let Robert O’Connor walk, with the former top-ten SNBL pick heading to the Monarchs. First baseman Bucky Jimenez was in a similar boat, signing with the Elephant Valley Homers.
While those departures are definitely acceptable in the grand sheme of things, the Saints made some very interesting additions. The signing that generated the most buzz was the Saints outspending everyone else to get Elephants catcher Brad Moore in the building, with the ex-Dolphin hopefully able to contribute in all phases of the game while also being a leader in the clubhouse.
The two more quiet - but no less impactful - signings were both from a lesser-known country; Loyo. The Saints managed to lure two players from the Sunshine Tigers, adding third baseman Jimi Fiazzo and Left Fielder Isabel Morata, two experienced, right-handed bats that are surely going to anchor the batting lineup.

Draft: (Position: 12)
The Saints actually had three different first-round selections in the draft. The highest of them was the 11th pick in the Chromatik amateur draft, which they obtained for Terry Soto at the most recent trade deadline. They ended up sending it and Center Fielder Rufus Salas to Rhoni in exchange to trade up to 9th-overall, where they selected 21-year old right-hander Ashleigh Witters. She attended the Chromia Central College University and made herself known as a contact pitcher, and will add to the Saints incredible pitching staff.
With the 12th-overall pick in the LPB draft, the Saints chose another pitcher in righty-reliever Lorenzo Harvey and his great off-speed pitch potential, even though the 21-year-old South Newlandian isn’t entirely under full control of his potential yet.
The team in gold also had the 14th overall pick, acquired from Masmow in return for the Dragons trading into two second-rounders the previous draft. The Saints spent this pick on a fielder, namely Right Fielder Evander Stone. The polished, 23-year-old Llamanean impressed with great plate discipline, and will slot into the outfield nicely.
The second round saw the Saints with the 27th-pick, which they obtained from the Kingfishers in the Luxolo Mbeki trade a few years back, sending the 36th pick back to Peninsulara this draft. Anyhow, the Saints went pitcher again, getting another polished Llamanean in 23-year-old left-hander Lucy Walker-Diaz and her excellent command.
The Saints had another second-round pick, 41st-overall, which they got from Elephant Valley United in return for a previous trade-up. This pick went into drafting yet another pitcher, in Newlandian righty-starter Rishi Mondal, a 20-year-old with a decent fastball.
Last, but not least, the Saints selected Samuel Bergmann as infield depth in the third round, adding some decent contact skills with the Newlandian.

Outlook:
This team is full of potential for Dana Hussel to work with. The pitching staff features recent rookie of the year Wolodymyr King, who is rapidly ascending to being the best pitcher in South Newlandia, and Pet Jensen of Brookstation, a good pair of aces. The ever-underrated lefty Llamanean Wu, widely seen as underachieving in her third season in the bigs. She may be having a hard time living up to the 6th-overall pick, but she is a valuable mid-rotation arm. Next to rookie Walker-Diaz, fan favourite Lester Plattsburgh from Qasden is also still around.
The bullpen is looking a lot more questionable. Nakajima Ryoi hasn’t really been the consistent answer as closer, and the other options are all rookies; relying on them is quite risky. Two of the rookies are nominally starting pitchers, too, and it remains to be seen how well they translate to the bullpen. The Saints are playing a lot of stock into the ability of Witters; as a CCCU player, this is not unjustified.
At catcher, the Saints have their potentially best player in new addition Brad Moore, and they still have Chromatik international Marea Homaly at first, but the Bergmann-Hanzo middle infield does not inspire a lot of confidence. The Saints are the rare SNL team without a great shortstop. Fiazzo at third might make up for it, but this infield defense seems to have more holes than the plot of South Newlandia.
In the outfield, Isabel Morata and the longer-tenured Ripeppi will likely share the reps, being two good options, with Evander Stone getting the start in Right Field. One question of concern is their Center Field; with neither Gena Smith nor Neil Persson proving that they can hold the position down so far.

Sun City Flames

Offseason Movements:
The Flames are certainly one of the teams of the South Newlandian league. As usual, they certainly had an off-season; following a season where they fell way short of their hopes to repeat as division champs, the Flameys lost a couple of their important, good players, including their talented third basewoman Ava Llorente, with the Llamanean signing in Emerald City (another almost-element) after two seasons with the Flames. Additionally, Banijan star shortstop Mesuli Calata signed a free agency deal with the Masmow Dragons; at his age, it might actually end up being his final season in professional baseball there. The last, less notable, loss was lefty starter Isaac Sabathia joining his third team of his young career, signing with Ruditown and returning to the SNL North.
The Flames did not sign any players of note in the off-season.

Draft: (Position: 6)
Like the Saints and Monarchs, the Flames also held a pick in the Chromatik amateur draft. They spent the seventh (7th) overall pick there on a starting pitcher, Ling Xe, who played for Pùr State University. Ling impressed with pinpoint control there, ascending to near the top of the Chromatik draft board.
In the LPB amateur draft, the Flames held the sixth (not 7th) overall selection; choosing to spend it on a player to inherit the third-base position of Ava Llorente. They signed Maria Ellis, a 22-year-old graduate from Elephant Valley University. The Newlandian proved to be quite well-rounded in college, and also, her name is Ellis.
Thanks to the trade that sent Wesley Reid to Elephant Valley, the Flames got to pick again in the first round, choosing a Center Fielder in rangey Llamanean Darcy Quagliarella at 21st overall, to hopefully improve the teams poor outfield defense from the previous season and allow Francisco Adam to move into Right Field at last.
Due to the trade that landed O’Mally in Sun City way back, Denison had the Flames’ second-rounder, so they had to wait until the third round to pick again, and added a catcher in Llamanean Nick Albrecht, largely drafted for his defensive abilities.

Outlook:
Al Krauss, the teams Drawkland-native coach, has worked some magic for this team before – its how they won the division two seasons back – and will need to do so again.
This team isn’t very good, starting with the Starting Rotation. Ling Xe might actually be the best player here, with the opening game starter against the Lanar Rangers being Zachariah Dean.
It gets better in the bullpen at first, with closer Franklin Bell, and then immediately gets much worse. I’m at least 70% sure at least two of these names aren’t even baseball players. Saint Eleanor? Sylestone?
Moving on to the batting lineup, there’s Bradley Jenkins, another player from Drawkland, still catching. His experience will be valuable, at least. At first, the Flames continue to waste the talent of Tiffany Grey, who is expected to become a free agent at seasons’ end. The middle infield is made of a couple mid-20 picks, with rookie Ellis at third.
The outfield looks marginally better. There, the Flames have the second-best player on the roster, Quebecois Kang Ye-Rim, in left field, with rookie Quagliarella in Center, and Francisco Adam of Delaclava in Right. The Delaclav veteran has proven to be able to hit when he’s not playing Center for some reason. Let’s not talk about Israel Harper at DH.

Walstreim Stingrays

Offseason Movements:
After the weirdness of the last pre-LPB-expansion season that saw the Flames briefly take control of the South, the Walstreim Stingrays were back in business. They had, despite a lot of growing pains, eventually gained a significant lead in the South, allowing them a spot back in the playoffs. They managed to outlast a tough, but worn Homers’ team in the Division Series, to face off against the Dolphins in the South Newlandian Championship, where they lost.
The Rays were, of course, hoping to run it back after a successful season under coach Pedro Volcoron from TJUN-ia. After all, it was the second time in three seasons they had made the National Finals, but they were still without an actual championship in the modern era of South Newlandian baseball.
There would be obstacles to overcome. Kyle McNash, the team’s long time TJUN-ian ace, retired after the playoffs, leaving a large void in the starting rotation. The team also lost reliever Connor Harris from Brookstation, who returned to play baseball closer to home. Tahnkfully, especially to some big contract extensions to key players, the Rays otherwise kept the team mostly together, avoiding avalanches of exits like other teams had seen.
Unfortunately for the Stingrays, this also tied up a significant amount of money that was then not available for international free agency signings. They were still able to make one big one, replacing McNash by bringing in a new TJUN-ian international, Jason McRae, as the new ace of the squad.

Draft: (Position: 15)
Beside a surprisingly good draft position, there was a further piece of good news for the Rays. Thanks to the Homers trading up in the previous draft, the Rays would have two first-rounders, at 15 and 19.
They used them to double-dip on relief pitchers, signing a pair of young Newlandians. Lefty Michael Otto is the older one the two, known primarily for his triple-digit-touching heater and a tendency to get it blown up whenever it is in the 90s. Right-hander Isabella Romero is a year younger, and excels mostly with her good pitch mix and foresight; her issue is largely locating the filthy stuff.
Owing to the trade that brought Miles Savey to Walstreim, the Rays had no second-rounder in this draft, and had to wait until round three to get back into the action, where they added an option at third base in Roberto Villa. The Newlandian mostly has defensive upside.

Outlook:
It’s bound to be a tougher season for the team of Volcoron. Despite being able to keep the movement largely lateral, it’s clear that both the Saints and Rhinos have made major improvements to their teams, and will represent much tougher competition.
Nevertheless, the Rays should be able to compete. They have a rock-solid top two pitching, with a TJUN-ian and Chromatik international in Jason McRae and Miles Savey with some Sanford for flavour, which should be solid enough to produce at least decent results, despite neither Battey nor Burke really being reliable options in the past, even when the upside is there.
The bullpen is pretty good all around, led by a still almost as new Hine Salle in the closer role. She’s paired with another Chromatik international with Beatrice Castreaux as second-in-command, and a pair of rookies hopefully able to contribute.
The infield is certainly among the most interesting ones in the South Newlandian League. Grady Elliott and Aiden Beasley, both from Hapilopper, are still pretty good, but are also in their thirties now, and are likely past their career pick at this point; while TJUN-ian Matoko Kagawa is even older than that, with the second baseman possibly on his last professional season. That leaves Brookstations Josh Malouf, who has regressed from his LPB-entering form to a pretty average LPB shortstop, and second-season starter Levin Griffiths at first. All of these players could be really good or really bad with no real way to predict where it’s going for the Rays.
The outfield is a bit clearer. Chan Ford of Base Corps fame remains one of the most underrated players in the league, and TJUN-ian Jaguar Anna Builler at DH is a very valuable bat. The two Llamanean outfielders in Guthrie and Rivera, meanwhile, are both pretty average.
It’s not going to be an easy season for the Rays, but with the highly qualified Pedro Volcoron leading the team, they should at least be in contention for a wildcard spot. However, the window is closing fast – soon, the Stingrays will find themselves out of stars, out of opportunities, and forced into a rebuild. It remains to be seen how soon that will be.

by **Milchama** » Mon Jan 23, 2023 7:28 pm

"So how about that first half?"

"Pretty mediocre"

"Yeah but at least we go to the second half with momentum"

"Yeah it's good to have some of that momentum"

"And we created a rival accidentally"

"Also, a good thing I appreciate the Almonds being so accommodating as to take us seriously"

"One should never do that"

"Never a good decision to take us seriously"

"Also, never a good idea to go 'scoreboard' when unranked"

"Nope, also a bad idea"

"So it goes, they will learn"

"And will this somewhat condescending conversation help them?"

"God I hope so we haven't had a good proper rivalry since Cassadaigua in the 50s and that was so long ago"

"Almost 10 years"

"I miss the Lowland Clans"

"Me too"

"Though in that one we were the young upstars doing dumb things"

"Sure but I still miss those guys"

"Yeah we could use more of that"

"So it goes"

"Now we need a better second half"

"Yeah"

"Should we fire the manager?"

"Not until he loses in octos like Clioch"

"Fair enough"

"Well then we know what time it is"

"That it is"

"Here we go!"

"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!"

by **Zwangzug** » Mon Jan 23, 2023 7:39 pm

The Kerlagrad Courier

In the ongoing Eagles' Cup of football, the Turnip has mentioned several useful acronyms in the Electrumite media. Notably, "KHIII" stands for "Kwisatz Haderach III," the third potential incarnation of a "super being that can look through past memories through space and time." In recent times, Griffith Puyo-Sachar has mostly downplayed claims to play this role; however, with regards to a tenth-inning walkoff home run from the Greater Nordics, he has said that he "totally saw this one coming" and "just wanted to remind you guys what we're dealing with."

"I mean, let's face it, of all the potential forces to unleash upon an unsuspecting galaxy, Renée Saarinen's bat is probably among the least horrific," he pointed out. "While the weight of terrible destiny is a burden no soul should bear, the inevitable torment of a late-inning Zebras collapse is something you should really all be used to by now."

After Thorvald Dahl was hit by a pitch from Phyllis Muskat, Shoba Dhamir--who had been working with coach Napoleon Huey in the bullpen--came in in relief. She got Carl Nelissen to foul out to Jonathan MacSaruh, but Saarinen's homer in left-center made it a 6-4 Nordics victory.

Puyo-Sachar dismissed concerns that Huey was a secret agent of the Nordic team. "They're only 5-7," he pointed out. "I don't expect anyone to betray us on behalf of some third seed, they'd have to be playing the long con on behalf of South Newlandia or someone actually imposing." After concerned inquiries from the assembled press, he added that he believed that "the Elephants are a team of honor who would not resort to such underhanded tactics, but we should not eliminate possibilities before they miraculously vanish from the realms of conjecture."

He also scoffed at the idea that he was being unfair to Dhamir by throwing her into a doomed situation. "Compared to all the tragedies you could undergo--losing a parent, a child, being forced into a loveless marriage, getting eaten by a giant sand monster--playing a game against a skillful opponent should be no trouble at all. There'd be no enjoyment in the exercise if you knew you were foreordained to win every game."

When asked whether there was any enjoyment in the exercise for him, if he allegedly knew the results either way, he shrugged. "I mean, I'm stuck here with Huey and Montana and Wallace. They're distraction enough that some of the unimportant details fall out of my brain."

His forecast for the fifth series, against Ingont, was remarkably non-prescient, saying only, "I'm looking forward to meeting with Aravec Baravchelis, who's known as a gentle, grandfatherly figure. The nice kind of grandfather, not the stupid kind that picks a fight with a bull and dies."

At press time, my editor was trying to get me to work in a callback to Keegan Oates (shortstop WBC 16-19, for what was then the FTC Crabs), but that's too contrived even for me.

by **Tikariot** » Mon Jan 23, 2023 8:12 pm

Ragnar Cederholm: Now, while I do have quite a bit of experience with hot sauces of varying hotness, I had not tried any of these ten myself.

Jonathan Villiers: That is...almost reassuring.

Ragnar Cederholm: (laughs) Good. So, I have one more question.

Jonathan Villiers: Alright, shoot!

Ragnar Cederholm: What's your guilty-pleasure food?

Jonathan Villiers: Ooh, that's a good one. I could technically put down Poultry in Motion again, but I guess you'd want something else.

Ragnar Cederholm: If possible, yes.

Jonathan Villiers: Hm. I think it's an Elleray chocolate bar, which has cinnamon in the chocolate itself, which is just divine!

Ragnar Cederholm: I'll make sure to try that!

Jonathan Villiers: If you like cinnamon, you won't regret it! They also have one with chili flakes.

Ragnar Cederholm: Ooh, now you really got me interested! Speaking of chili flakes, we have one more.

Jonathan Villiers: No.

Ragnar Cederholm: Uh, yes.

Jonathan Villiers: I am honestly scared of what is next...

Ragnar Cederholm: It doesn't sound that bad, actually.

Jonathan Villiers: Oh? What is it called?

Jonathan Villiers: ...

Ragnar Cederholm: You don't agree?

Jonathan Villiers: Widowmaker. Seriously? Widowmaker?

Ragnar Cederholm: Ehm, yes.

Jonathan Villiers: (sighs) So, let me get this straight. We had Firefarter, Dragon Breath, Scorched Earth, and more and now it culminates in Widowmaker?

Ragnar Cederholm: That's correct.

Jonathan Villiers: Do I have the right to call my wife before trying this? I want to hear her voice at least one more time.

Ragnar Cederholm: You -- could?

Jonathan Villiers: (closes his eyes and takes a deep breath) Alright, alright. Can I please get two glasses of milk and one tub of ice cream before I even touch this thing?

Ragnar Cederholm: Sure, sounds like a good idea actually.

Jonathan Villiers: (stares at the wing) OK. Tell my wife I love her, I'm going in!

Ragnar Cederholm: Let's go!

Jonathan Villiers: (turns red, starts to sweat profusely, evidently unsure if he should dare to swallow)

Ragnar Cederholm: Holy #$%@!

Jonathan Villiers: (tears streaming down his face, banging his fist onto the table trying to deal with the heat)

Ragnar Cederholm: (spooning ice cream at light speed)

Jonathan Villiers: (now walking around aimlessly before spitting out whatever was left in his mouth, then draining the milk glasses in one shot and grabbing the ice cream)

Ragnar Cederholm: (using an ice cube to cool off his lips) Wow! This is insane!

Jonathan Villiers: (still working on ice cream, he points his spoon at Ragnar semi-menacingly)

Ragnar Cederholm: (taking a deep breath) Ooh, do NOT inhale like this, it brings the burn back!

Jonathan Villiers: (rolls eyes)

Ragnar Cederholm: OK, it's slowly getting better, the ice cream definitely helps!

Jonathan Villiers: (whispering) This - is - not - safe...

Ragnar Cederholm: Well, you better be prepared, but it is survivable.

Jonathan Villiers: (still whispering hoarsely) Remains to be seen.

Ragnar Cederholm: The pepper in this is called Poco Loco and comes from Farfadillis.

Jonathan Villiers: (chuckles, then winces) Why am I not surprised?

Ragnar Cederholm: Got a point.

Jonathan Villiers: Good Lord, you need a weapon license for this.

Ragnar Cederholm: Licensed to chill-i!

Jonathan Villiers: (laughs out) Ow! Are there people that will willingly buy and eat this?

Ragnar Cederholm: Probably, otherwise it wouldn't be on the market.

Jonathan Villiers: Insanity...

Ragnar Cederholm: So, now that we have survived this--

Jonathan Villiers: --so far.

Ragnar Cederholm: (laughs) Yes, so far. So, what do you think as our first-ever guest?

Jonathan Villiers: It was, uh, an experience for sure. It was mostly fun, but as I said, some of these sauces you need a license for because that stuff could qualify as a biological weapon.

Ragnar Cederholm: You are not wrong, I will admit that. So would you do it again?

Jonathan Villiers: Hard no.

Ragnar Cederholm: Aaw.

Jonathan Villiers: OK, let me rephrase, I would do most of them again, but some of those are a very firm "never again."

Ragnar Cederholm: Fair, fair. Thank you so much, Jonathan, to be our guinea pig, so to say, and for our viewers at home, this is only the beginning, we are already working on more guests and will be bringing you our next edition soon!

Jonathan Villiers: I will be watching, because I don't want to miss this!

Ragnar Cederholm: (laughs) We have our first subscriber! Thank you for tuning in and see you next time on 'Conquering the Sun'!

by **Chromatika** » Mon Jan 23, 2023 10:13 pm

The Chromatik Developmental League, Season 1 - Regular Season Recap, Part 2

Regular Season Results:

Chromatik Development League 1    Pld     W    L     RF    RA    RD 
 1 Wirr Tsi Opulence              180   106   74    843   755   +88 First-Round Bye
 2 Z'ai'ai Loggers                180   104   76    863   754  +109 First-Round Bye
 3 Myana Merfolk                  180   104   76    902   762  +140 Playoffs
 4 Urrheddiao Knights             180   103   77    941   785  +156 Playoffs
 5 Sanar Vipers                   180    91   89    820   744   +76 Playoffs
 6 Anfanhar Monsoon               180    91   89    797   862   −65 Playoffs
 7 Lhor Waves                     180    81   99    766   830   −64 Eliminated
 8 Nonian Highlanders             180    79  101    778   898  −120 Eliminated
 9 Jatho Joyriders                180    75  105    747   814   −67 Eliminated
10 Tihon Sky                      180    66  114    674   927  −253 Eliminated

Playoffs, First round

3. Myana Merfolk vs. 6. Anfanhar Monsoon

Game 1
Anfanhar Monsoon        0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0  0
Myana Merfolk           0 0 0 5 0 1 1 1 X  8

Game 2
Anfanhar Monsoon        1 0 0 3 1 0 0 2 0  7
Myana Merfolk           1 0 0 1 0 0 0 2 0  4

Game 3
Myana Merfolk           0 0 2 1 0 0 1 0 1  5
Anfanhar Monsoon        0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0  1

Game 4
Myana Merfolk           0 0 3 0 0 0 0 1 2  6
Anfanhar Monsoon        0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0  1

(3) Myana Merfolk win, 3-1.

4. Urrheddiao Knights vs. 5. Sanar Vipers

Game 1
Sanar Vipers            0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0  1
Urrheddiao Knights      0 4 0 0 1 1 0 0 X  6

Game 2
Sanar Vipers            0 0 1 2 0 0 0 0 0  3
Urrheddiao Knights      3 2 0 1 0 0 0 0 X  6

Game 3
Urrheddiao Knights      0 3 1 0 0 1 0 1 1  7
Sanar Vipers            2 0 3 2 1 2 4 2 X 16

Game 4
Urrheddiao Knights      3 3 3 0 2 0 0 0 2 13
Sanar Vipers            0 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0  2

(4) Urrheddiao Knights win, 3-1.

Merfolk, Knights Separate from Vipers, Monsoon to Make Semifinals

All throughout the year, the top four were separate from the rest - only four teams made their way past the one hundred win mark, and thus the favorites were decided. Merfolk Third Baseman Alliana Bergman hit three home runs in the four-game series, including a three-run homer in the fourth game, and Myana took care of Anfanhar 3-1 to advance to the Semifinals. Merfolk Ace Judith Farnston, one of the best in the league, pitched a complete game in Game 1. The Monsoon's best player, Center Fielder Elianna Markson, hit a two two-run home runs in Game 2 to help the Monsoon tie it up, but that was when Bergman took over in Games 3 and 4, with great bullpen play, to help pace the Merfolk.

As for the other series - Knights vs. Vipers - the Vipers scored sixteen in Game 3 but that was it, as the Knights' pitching staff - Sandra Howell, Lana Bergsten, and Cree Smalls - took over. It is that same pitching staff that will give the Opulence a run for their money - while the Vipers, despite having two great bats in Shortstop Osman Delgado and Catcher Hera Asmell, fell short. They did well enough by making it here, though.

World Baseball Classic 56 Everything Thread

Batter Up!: The Gardens Returns To Cheers!

Hydrogen Cyanide Field, Game 3 vs Zorinitiee

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