W L Pct GB
Future Wax 39 17
.696 --
New Orleans 35 21 .625
4
Constantinople 32 24 .571
7
North Dakota 32 24 .571
7
The Dewey Dells 29 27 .518 10
TTFKA Bay City 28 28 .500 11
Other 99 27 29
.482 12
Area 51 17
36 .298 20.5
Manila Folders 10 43 .189 27.5
League Leaders
All stats
Team totals
MVP - Manny Ramirez, New Orleans
Cy Young - Pedro Martinez, Future Wax
Manager of the Year - Harold
Playoffs (March 4):
New Orleans 14 Constantinople 6
New Orleans 10 Constantinople 6
Constantinople 13 New Orleans 6
New Orleans 11 Constantinople 7
New Orleans 13 Constantinople 12
New Orleans d. Constantinople 4 games to 1
Playoffs (March 4):
North Dakota 7 Future Wax 5
Future Wax 8 North Dakota 7
Future Wax 9 North Dakota 2
North Dakota 2 Future Wax 1
Future Wax 4 North Dakota 0
North Dakota 11 Future Wax 5
Future Wax 2 North Dakota 1
Future Wax d. North Dakota 4 games to 3
World Series (March 11)
Future Wax 9 New Orleans 8
Future Wax 6 New Orleans 2
New Orleans 7 Future Wax 6
New Orleans 11 Future Wax 10 (10 innings)
New Orleans 10 Future Wax 9
New Orleans 6 Future Wax 4
New Orleans d. Future Wax 4 games to
2
Twits* Notes: (5/2) New SOMBILLA records set this year:
Highest batting average: R. Alomar, ND .411 (old record Piazza,
FW '96-97 .387)
Highest on-base pct: R. Alomar, ND .539 (old record Dykstra, FR
'91-92 .465)
Most RBIs: Ramirez, NO 80 (old record Piazza, FW '98-99 74)
Most home runs, team: Future Wax 166 (old record Future Wax
'99-00 159)
Most runs, team: Future Wax 435 (old record Future Wax '98-99 425)
Most RBIs, team: Future Wax 423 (old record Future Wax '97-98 413)
Most hits, team: North Dakota 663 (old record Future Wax '95-96
640)
Most walks, team: New Orleans 307 (old record Manila Folders '97-98
282)
Most consecutive seasons, playoffs: North Dakota and Future Wax
8
Most players used, season: Area 51 33 (old record Learned Hands
'86-87 32)
Highest averagem league: .289 (old record .280 '97-98)
Most homers, league: 882 (old record 833 '97-98)
Worst ERA, league 5.86 (old record 5.73 '97-98)
Most saves, league: 118 (old record 115 '93-94)
Worst record, season: Manila Folders 10-43 .189
(old record North Dakota '81-82 14-30 (.280)
Worst home record: Manila Folders 5-20 (.200) (old record
7-21 .250 BC '89-90, MF '89-90; Kakania '98-99)
Worst road record: Manila Folders 5-23 (.179) (old record Metrowest
'96-97 7-21)
Most games behind: Manila Folders 27.5 (old record Bay City '89-90
26)
Most consecutive losses, season: Manila Folders 14 (old record
North Dakota '81-82 13)
Fewest games played, 56-game season: Area 51 and Manila Folders
53
Most consecutive years without final stats: Eric (3)
Records tied:
Most runs: Bagwell, NO 63 (ties Piazza, FW '98-99)
Highest team batting average: North Dakota .320 (ties Future
Wax '96-97)
Fewest team saves: Manile Folders 4 (ties MF '91-92; BC '89-90;
BC '83-84)
HOME
AWAY
Randy 20-8 .714
Tom 19-9 .679
Harold 19-9 .679
Randy 19-9 .679
Robin 16-12 .571
Arnie 17-11 .607
Eric 15-13 .536
Harold 16-12 .571
Arnie 15-13 .536
Clint 15-13 .536
Tom 13-15 .464
Eric 14-14 .500
Clint 12-16 .429
Robin 12-16 .429
Jeff 10-18 .357
Jeff 7-18 .280
Matt 5-20 .200
Matt 5-23 .179
------------------- -----------------
Totals: 125-124 .502
124-125 .498
(3/11) New Orleans won 2 games in the bottom of the 9th and one in the bottom of the 10th to take its first championship. In game 3, FW held a 6-4 lead into the bottom of the 9th, about to go up 3 games to 0. Petrick's one-out bottom of the 9th pinch-hit 2-run homer tied it at 6-6, and E. Martinez 2-out homer won the game.
In game 4, FW jumped out to a 7-1 lead, chasing Benson, and held a 9-4 lead later on. NO cut it to 9-7, and Jenkins 8th inning 2-run shot of Pedro (who, by going 8 2/3 inns, was effecively burned out for the series) tied it at 9. Delucci's homer in the top of the 10th gave FW the 10-9 lead, but in teh bottom of the 10th, a Jenkins walk and Bagwell 2-run homer tied the series at 2.
In game 5, FW once again jumped in front, this time 9-3 after 6 1/2. 3 runs in the bottom of the 7th, and 2 more in the 8th bring NO to within one at 9-8. E. Martinez 2-ru nsingle in the bottom of the 9th brings Harold the home park sweep and a 3-2 series lead.
In Game 6, a seesaw game was 4-4 after 4. It stayed that way until the 7th, when Hermanson walked 4 consecutive batters, and NO never looked back.
(3/4) Against CN, Harold averaged nearly 11 runs per game. He had lots of big innings, including a 7-run 8th inning in Game 5. When asked who his best offensive stars were, he replied "just about everyone"...In game 7 of the FW-ND series, Matt Williams' 2-run homer off Hoffman in the 6th inning gave FW a 2-1 lead. It all came down to the 8th inning when, with one on and 2 out, ND's Klesko doubled off FW's Pedro, and Kendall blocked Cirillo from scoring the tying run on Griffey's throw to end the inning.
(2/25) The SOMBILLA's wild final weekend of the regular season began with a near-scandal on Thursday night. The Dells appeared to have continued their record-breaking el foldo by splitting with the lowly Folders. That meant The Dells had lost 14 of their last 17 games to blow what most in the lague had assumed was a sure playoff spot. On Friday, Matt discovered much to his shock and chagrin, that Jim Edmonds was ineligible for his last eight (8) plate appearances due to injury. (Little spacy there, are we?) Anyway, he and Eric agreed to employ SOMBILLA Bylaw section I, part C, paragraph 1 by saying "Fuck it," unless Robin happened to sweep ND, because in that case, a one-game replay (the only Edmunds game that Eric lost) could propel the Dells into a 3-way tie for 4th place...Later on that day, Friday night in fact, TTFKABC (needing to sweep ND to tie for 4th) exploded for 8 home runs to pound Lima and ND, 27-9. On Saturday night, Randy Johnson staked ND to an 8-3 lead entering the 8th, and the dugout was celebrating a clinched playoff spot. A homer by Ripken and 2 doubles later and Hoffman came in, smoking a playoff clinching victory cigar. A single, walk and 2-run triple by L. Castillo later and it was 8-8. Bottom of the 9th, Dave Justice, pinch-hitting for Santiago, blasts one over the Holstein grazing in RF and ND clinches. BC played very hard in the finale as well, coming back from 6-3 to fall short 8-7. ND finishes with not one but two .400 hitters (B. Williams at .411 and R. Alomar at .402)...On Sunday, all kinds of possibilities were in the air. If Clint won 5, there would have been an 8th game winner-take-all match, as O99 and NO would have been tied for 4th. If Clint won 4, NO would have been in a 3-way tie for 2nd at 32-24 (and finshed 4th on the tiebreaker). But Harold made quick work of O99, winning the first 5, to take 2nd place convincingly. NO was paced by star of the weekend M. Ramirez, who had 3 HR and 12 RBI to finish the season with 28 HR and 80 RBI. They played all 7 games in a record 3 1/2 hours...Constantinople takes 3rd place by going 5-2 against ND on the season...Draft Day Sunday April 1.
(2/21) CN stumbled home to face the fearsome Wax. The buzz around the park was that one game would clinch a playoff spot and the best regular season ever for CN, but 2 games gives them the season series over Wax and a career .500 record for 3 year manager Kinney coming off of a crushing sophomore slump.
Wax was wax and the steroid warriors hammered out 6 homers in their first game between Andro shakes. CN actually had a 7-6 lead at the end of 5, but their relief just could not hold on. Urbina was the dog of the series giving up 11 ERs 6 IPs including 5 ER in the 9th inning of Game 1 making it a laugher Wax 18-8.
Wax got to Rupe early in game 2 getting 6 runs despite 5 Ks in 2 2/3 IP for Rupe. Wax hit only 2 HRs and held on for a thin 8-7 victory with the Manatees leaving the bases loaded in the ninth and runners on 2nd and 3rd in the 8th.
Game 3 saw star pitcher Tapani (who is available) starting. Wax got 3 unearned runs get 4 runs early and knock out Tapani, but the Manatees were up to this challenge and came back for a 9-6 victory for Timlin (Save Rocker). Huskey had a homer and a 2 run double to pace the offense.
Game 4 saw Pedro take the mound. The Manatees who had defeated Pedro earlier in the season got two runs off him and a disputed call (A cocked die which Manatees before hearing the result called for a reroll and after hearing that it was a grand slam agreed to allow it as long as Wax realized that in the playoffs if they played would not be acceptable. Wax, who admitted that it obviously meant more to the obnoxious twit managing the Manatees took the roll over and hit into a inning ending double play.) Radke pitched 7 2/3 (cough) scoreless innings and the Manatees lead 2-0 going into the ninth hoping to defeat Pedro for the second time. However,with Urbina on the mound and Wax wanting to save Pedro it was not to be. Urbina gave up a walk and then a double fell in behind Everett (1 vs his 2 Def Rating) and an intentional walk to Giles loaded the bases with one out. Urbina struck out Piazza to get the second out and then gave up a ball park single to Kendall pinch hitting for Griffey. Nomar came up with 2 outs and the bases loaded and cleared them with a triple. Thome was struck out but Wax was up 4-2. Manatees started the ninth with a sharp hit to Juan Gonzalez at third (Matt Williams was injured in the game and Kent had gone in to play third only to be replaced by Gonzo as Kent returned to second later). A long single by Alfonzo bought the score to 4-3. A Rod and Casey fouled out and struck out to end the CN regular season. Hitters of the series were Thome (6 RBIs 2 HRs in game 1 with a missed BPHR) and Nomar with the back crushing triple...Draft Day Sunday April 1.
(2/19) Despite seasons on very different trajectories, the Area 51-Future Wax rematch was close and hard fought. However, A51 was overmatched against the talented Future Wax squad, which clinced first place on Friday night. The strange visitors leapt to an earily lead in the first game, but Griffey sent a two-run shot into orbit in the 5th to stake the Wax to a 4-3 lead. Johnstone then closed the door, with 3-1/3 innings of scoreless relief, narrowly gaining a save as ballpark homerun chances by Dan Wilson (1-10, 8th, to tie) and Chipper Jones (1-13, 9th, to win) fell short. Jones took out his frustration on Pedro Martinez, with a 1st inning two-run homer in the second game. Pedro took a 12 strike-out 3-hitter into the 9th, but his team was down 3-1. With one out, pinch-hitter Jason Kendall walked, and pinch-hitter Barry Bonds tied the score on a 2-run (ballpark) homer. Pedro added two more Ks to his total in the bottom of the inning, after which Jeff Kent handed him the win with another pinch-hit, two-run homer in the 10th. After two heartbreaking losses, the spirit seemed to go out of the home team. The final game was a 10-3 rout, with Hermanson pitching a complete game 4-hitter for the Wax, completing a series and season sweep...On Monday, Area 51 came back to spoil The Dells season bigtime. The Dells, who have now lost 9 of their last 10, are in a free-fall. The A51 staff yielded just 2 runs over the entire series (3-1, 2-1, 1-0), capped off by a 9th inning come from behind win by Foulke ...Draft Day Sunday April 1.
(2/16)
From: Arnie
Eric has determined that if Clint wins five against Harold, I drop
2 of
3 to Robin, Eric wins only 4 of 7 against Matt and Jeff, and Randy
sweeps Tom, then it's a five-way tie for 2nd place.
Holy shit!! I checked the bylaws and they state "If more than 4 teams tie for 1st-4th, we'll play it by ear." We could be headed for a constitutional crisis!
From Matt:
It's not a crisis. It's just a reaffirmation that our System works.
God
bless you all, and God bless the Strat-O-Matic Baseball Ivy League
League,
Advanced. (<<<Standing Ovation>>>)
From Eric:
And God bless the vice commissioner, for without his disaster-by-design
season I do believe we would not now look like so many stowaways stuffed
inside a steamer trunk. Which only affirms my worst fears, that the
Folders will rally round their Shemp-like leader and play the spoiler roll
in true Stooge fashion, wherein the season will end in mele of comedic
chaos, and then fade to black abruptly without resolution...........
(2/15) New Orleans knocked The Dells back into 5th place tonight on the back of sensational pitching. Kris Benson pitched a complete game 6-hit shutout (6 hits, 9 K's, 0 BB), and Harold's relief was 'unhittable'. Ramirez cracked his 25th homer as NO won 2-0, 5-3, and 8-4...The SOMBILLA enters the final week of the season with a wild scramble for the final 3 playoff spots, and a very real possibility of a one-game playoff for 4th...Draft Day Sunday April 1.
(2/14)It was a long flight out to the Waxhome for ND after Sunday night's demoralizing final-game loss to Constantinople. ND had taken a 5-2 lead into the 7th inning of the game, one with far-reaching playoff implications. Fernando Tatis' 2-run homer off Hoffman had tied the game for CN in the 7th, and in the 9th, another Tatis 2-run homer (off Remlinger) capped the CN come-from-behind 7-5 win, sending ND nearly out of the playoff picture. And if that wasn't enough, ND had three tired pitchers and was scheduled to face Pedro in game 1. All this weighed on the minds of the players as they landed at hated Future Wax airport. Sure enough, homers by Piazza, M. Williams, Piazza again, and then Nomar routed ND 11-3 in game 1, as Lima took one for the team. But R. Johnson came back and pitched a CG 7-hitter in game 2, (striking out 11), winning 7-3, as R. Alomar (3 for 3, 2 BB, HR, 3 rbi) and Larkin (2-run HR) helped tie the series at 1. In game 3, 2 homers by Griffey staked FW and Moyer to a 4-0 lead through 5. Six singles by ND later and it was 4-3. Then Nomar got injured and Kent (5e88) had to play SS. Giles' HR made it 5-3 FW going into the 9th. ND got 2 on, and then pinch-hitter Lampkin hit a GB(SS)X that got by Kent for a single to load em up with none out for Mo (8 HR in 58 AB) Vaughn against Cormier. FW brings the infield in, and the moves pays off as Mo hits a grounder to Kent at SS, who throws home for the force. Lankford then hits a sac fly to make it 5-4, but Cormier gets L. Gonzalez to popout to end the game. In the finale, ND pounded Greg Maddux for 14 runs, 22 hits, and 8 walks to salvage the split, 14-7. Alomar, now hitting .398, went 9 for 14 with 6 walks...Draft Day Sunday April 1.
(2/11) The Folders officially clinched the all-time single season worst team record when TTFKABC (whose own playoff hopes crashed and burned against CN) won their makeup game 7-2. The Folders lost despite Robin grounding into 4 double plays and hitting into a clutch out over the first 5 innings...CN took over 2nd place going 5-2 on the day, led by Ellis Burks (8 for 22 .364, 6 runs, 5 homers, 9 rbi, 6 bb)...Harold did what he had to against the league's two sub-five hundred teams, going 6-1 to move to within a half-game of 4th. The highlight of NO's season came in the finale against Jeff when Bagwell hit a two-out three run homer in the bottom of the 9th against Benitez, NO winning 11...Although it was a very cold day, the warm temperatures and rain of the previous 2 days did not make for a happy rink. Clydesdale Tom made a few new holes in the ice; Arnie, Rachel and Jinny were the only other skaters...Draft Day, 12:00 Sunday April 1 (draft at 2 ET).
(2/1) The SOMBILLA enters the final month of the regular season with only one team essentially guaranteed a playoff spot. Six other teams, vying for 3 playoff spots, are separated by just 3 1/2 games...The Dells landed in Somerville last night and found Rat Bastard Randy in the late stages of a the Tufts flu, surrounded by various sniffling, coughing housemates, throwing Eric the Hypochondriac off his game. Randy took 3 of 4, winning 5-1, 9-4, 5-3, and losing 5-1. A late night review of the scoresheets showed Palmeiro, reeling since the Walker trade, squandering many run scoring opportunities, and stranding more runners on base than there are red hairs poking out of Clint's nose. Six ballparks homers were missed by Eric, five by lefties, and five were missed by Randy, mostly righties, though he connected late in game 4 for one, from the left side. Randy played briskly through the first two games, then became distracted after one of his poxed-face roomies tuned in the Ken Burns Jazz documentary, further throwing Eric off his game, who just wanted to play and get out before his cheeks starting looking like dots on dice. Eric, an adherent of Miss Manners, the Boston Globe etiquette columnist, will forward to Randy rules of conduct of a host, the social contract of entertaining ones' guests, and the mutual though oft unspoken rules that states guests are required to behave in a proper and genial manner befitting invitees, and that in return the host need behave in a manner that does not make the guest worry he has accidentally wandered into the wrong home, or that his presence and activities are not the kind of inconvenience most often associated with distant relatives who overstay their welcome. In any case, whether by loss or by germ, Eric woke up the next morning with a headache...Meanwhile at the Dock Ellis Crackhouse & Stadium, Game 1 featured a questionable, unorthadox managerial strategy by North Dakota. ND was ahead in the 6th inning, 9-5 (thanks in part to an O'Neill 3-run blast). New Orleans had men on 1st and 2nd with 2 out against Remlinger. ND walked Bagwell intentionally to load the bases, then walked Ramirez intentionally to force a run in to make it 9-6. Remlinger then got Hidalgo to harmlessly pop out to end the inning. Final score, ND, 9-6. In Game 2, NO pounded out an 18-14 win; ND's last second touchdown chance falling a few yards short. E. Martinez had 7 rbi's for the victors. ND won the finale, 6-4, thanks to Luis Gonzalez (4 for 5) rbi hit to break the 4-4 tie in the 7th, and Hoffman's 10th save...Draft Day, Sunday April 1.
(1/29) Other 99 leapt into 5th place over the weekend in a battle of the numbered teams. As usual, Other 99 management was tight-lipped over releasing any details of the series...Draft Day, Sunday April 1.
HOME
AWAY
Randy 18-6 .750
Tom 14-7 .667
Eric 14-7 .667
Arnie 13-8 .619
Harold 10-5 .667
Randy 10-7 .588
Robin 14-9 .609
Eric 12-9 .571
Arnie 12-10 .545
Clint 14-11 .560
Tom 12-12 .500
Robin 11-14 .440
Clint 12-12 .500
Harold 9-12 .429
Jeff 10-12 .455
Jeff 4-18 .182
Matt 3-18 .143
Matt 4-19 .174
------------------- -----------------
Totals: 105-91 .536
91-105 .464
(1/25) It was a great day for Future Wax. Randy pounded a reeling TTFKABC (2-9 in last 11 games) 15-4, 4-1, 14-3, and 11-10 in 11 innings. In the finale, Robin was up 10-2 early on and 10-6 with 2-out in the bottom of the 9th when Randy hit 4 consecutive homers (Gonzalez, M. Williams, Bonds and Piazza) off Christainsen. M. Williams' homer won it in the 11th. On the plus side, Matt Stairs played a flawless SS for BC after Jeter was injured. In the nightcap, M. Williams' grand slam won game 1 against Harold 6-5. Williams added a 3-run shot in game 3....North Dakota's players had a couple of kegs in the dugout in anticipation of an easy 'party' series against at Manila, which the Folders obliged...Draft Day, Sunday April 1.
(1/23) After a devastating series against DD, CN changed it's lineup to give new addition Fernando Tatis a chance to beat up on his former team. He took Burks accustomed 3rd spot and struck out in his first 4 at bats. The first game was not to be about Tatis, but about CN homeruns. A51 had 6 doubles, and CN had 7 homeruns including two grand slams (A. Rod and Abreu) in the third inning to break the game open on their way to a 21-8 victory.
The second game saw an unlikely shutout pitched by Tapani and Thurman. Tapani struck out 8 while stranding 8 runners including the bases loaded in the 2nd and 3rd innings including striking out the side after allowing runners to 2nd and third with no outs. Thurman allowed only two base runners over four innings. The offensive side of the game was highlighted by a 3 run 1st inning Karros homer and an RBI double and solo shot by A. Rod (3 HR in the first two games) to account for the 5-0 score. Tatis lead off and collected 2 more strike outs.
The third game started with Mussina coming out and calling for a split and giving up 7 runs. Luckily for him, he was well matched by Radke who also gave up 7 runs (6 earned). However the CN bullpen could not keep it together and they gave up 4 runs to allow for a 11-7 A51 victory behind homers by Preston Wilson (5 RBIs) and Delgado. Tatis collected another 2 Ks and Everett, Burks and Abreu had homers in a losing cause. (Abreu missed a 3 run ball park homer that would have tired Mussina in the second inning.)
The last game was the rubber game for the season series. Rupe and Mays combined for a shutout and a 11-0 victory as CN took over 3rd place. The hard luck aliens ended the 2nd and 3rd innings with clutch outs. (One was a questionable call due to a gust of wind) A. Rod had 3 homers and 4 RBIs, Everett had a grand slam, Alfonzo had a 2 run homer to pace the Manatees.
The player of the series was A. Rod who went 10 for 19, 8 Runs, 1 2B, 6 HRs, 13 RBIs, 5 Ks and a walk. Tatis ended the series 2 for 17 with 10 Ks...Randy has scheduled a rare SOMBILLA 'day-night' doubleheader for Thursday...Draft Day, Sunday April 1.
(1/21) The red-hot Dewey Dells (6-1 over last 7 games) knocked BC out of 2nd place on Sunday. Robin missed 7 BP homers for righties in Mellor Meadows, rolling a '3', '4' and '5' when only 1-2 would suffice, and she hit no BP homers for lefties (1-7). Her only made BP HR was meaningless in the 9th inning of the final game (to close the score to 7-2) after she switched to use Eric's 20-sided 'thing'. The Dells were led by Star of the Week, Keith Foulke who had 2 saves in 3 innings, with no BB, no hits and 4 K's. Eric won game 1, 3-0, and in game 2, Koch blew a save for BC when Brian Jordan hit a 9th inning pinch-hit 2-run double to win 6-5. BC stopped the Dells winning streak with a combined 3-hit 1-0 shutout in game 3, before the Dells' Millwood came back with a CG 7-2 win in the finale...Draft Day: Sunday, April 1, 2001.
(1/18) Tom's offense took offense at something last night, perhaps being hauled all the way to Arlington, and played whiffle ball for three games and made Eric's staff all look like Cy Youngs, as the Dells took over 2nd place. Conversely, Eric's offense took offense at Eric, and his ballpark selection, and teed off on the road, with Larry Walker hitting for the cycle in game 2, collecting for the series 2 dingers, 7 ribbies, 6 runs, 5 walks (2 intentional), and going 8 for 12 overall, backed up by 2 dingers and 7 ribbies from Lieberthal, who was glad to play in a man's ballpark instead of a sissy pitcher's park. Scores were 7-4, 12-3, and 13-2. Matt, as usual, was a gracious host, but had an unusual amount of canned beer on hand, which one ill-mannered, snobby, microbrewed manager could not help but comment upon. The vice commish, always one to take the high road, said "up yours, you little puke, and drink."...Matt can be excused for such boorishness; his team broke the SOMBILLA's 19-year old record by dropping his 14th straight in the opener against BC, 4-1, wiping the forgettable '82-83 North Dakota squad off the books. The Folders stopped the streak in game 2, winning for the first time in 4 months. Jim (Why am I here?) Edmunds smacked a bases loaded triple in the 6th inning , and it held up for the 4-2 victory. In game 3, the Folders began a new losing streak in fine fashion when McGwire's 6 rbi's were negated by teammate Shane Andrews' falling for the hidden ball trick (by Luis Castillo) to kill a rally as they fell short, 8-6...Draft Day: Sunday, April 1, 2001.
(1/11) Area 51 dealt a blow to North Dakota's playoff hopes with an 'upset' split against North Dakota last night. The series started off well for ND, aided by 'Assistant Manager' Jinny Pollinger's rolling 2 homers (B. Williams, Alomar) for a 5-run 4th inning. Knowing who provides for her upkeep, she refused an entreaty to roll for Jeff, and ND cruised 14-5. After the Assistant went 'night-night', A51 came back to win game 2, 4-3, with a two-run rbi double by Lofton providing the difference as Mussina, Kline, Swindell and Benitez allowed 0 runs and 4 hits after the 2nd inning. ND came from behind on 3rd-string catcher Ramon Hernandez's 2-out, 2-run pinch-hit 9th inning homer run, to win game 3, 3-1. But in game 4, A51 showed some mettle by coming back from a 5-0 deficit, to win a wild and wooly game, 8-7. Renteria's 8th inning homer off Ritchie was the difference...In case you missed it, at a noon press conference today, low level Constantinople officials reported that eccentric Owner Land Ormiston was reached behind the Iron Curtain (real world: Land got back from 3 weeks in Europe) and that he had approved a long rumored deal. Miguel Tejada was traded to Area 51 for Fernando Tatis and a 2001 7th round draft switch (if A51's pick is better than CN, CN will trade their 7th round pick for A51's). Tejada, a 1998 second draft pick, had his ascension blocked by Alex Rodriquez and had been requesting a trade for two years and had laid down an ultimatum to CN after they signed A. Rod to a SOMBILLA record contract earlier this year. Other sources feel that this is yet another attempt by the factions lead by assistant GM/Manager Kinney to rid the team of the old guard. Tatis was a 1998 fourth round pick that fell out of grace with A51 when new ownership questioned his dedication and work out ethic. (Detail: If CN really chokes and the CN 7th round pick ends up as a better draft pick than A51's, CN will then choose to switch 8th round picks (assuming that one is better due to a thing off roll) or to take A51's 10th round pick.)...Draft Day: Sunday, April 1, 2001.
(1/9) The Folders record-breaking season continues as last night's sweep enabled them to tie the league's 19-year old record with 13 consecutive losses. Manila continues to be a house of horrors for Matt's team. Andy Ashby faced the minimum in the first, but was greeted by Carl Everett with a leadoff homerun that opened the flood gates for a five run tiring second inning as CN took game 1 in a 12-3 laugher. The second game saw CN's Radke (not good enough to make the Manila roster) return against his mates and he gave up 6 runs over 6 2/3 innings. However the Manatees were up to the challenge as they scored 11 runs on home runs from Giambi, Everett, A. Rod and Varitek to win 11-8. The third game looked good for Manila as they were up 5-4 going into the top of the ninth. Abreu came up with one out and hit a ball park homer to tie the game and Giambi came up after one out and hit the game winning homerun as Urbina came in for his second save of the series. The last game saw a similar laugher to the first game as CN completed the sweep with a 9-2 victory. Rocker did not pitch in the series, fueling rumors of his imminent trade. As Land is MIA, there are rumors that coach/GM Kinney might take matters into his own hands and get a trade or two done. The goat of the series was McGwire who was 2 for 13 with 5 BB (none intentional) and no extra base hits...Matt (1-13 since returning from parental sabbatical) goes for the consecutive loss record next Wednesday night against TTFKABC...Draft Day: Sunday, April 1, 2001.
(1/7) Clint clawed his way back to .500, and closed to within 2 games of the playoffs, by storming back and winning the final 3 games of the series on the road against Robin Saturday. BC started strong with 4 homers (Jeter, B. Anderson, Stairs, Green) to win game 1, 9-2, as Daal pitched a 3-hitter. Ripken's 9th inning 3-run blast off Zimmerman in game 2 gave Robin the come-from-behind 6-4 victory. Other 99's O. Hernandez and Zimmerman came back to pitch a combined 6-hit shutout to win game 3 2-0. Robin went up 3 games to 1 on Cal Ripken's 2 doubles, 2 rbi's and Dreifort, Koch and Christiansen's pitching, to win 3-1. Game 5 was bombs away as homers by R. Henderson, Helton, and Nevin gave Other 99 the 9-3 laugher. Other 99 cruised again in game 6, 9-3, as Zimmerman pitched 3 2/3 shutout innings for the win, yielding 2 hits and a walk, and striking out 8. In the game 7 rubber game, Other 99 scored 5 runs in the 6th inning with the help of 5 hits to win 8-2. The key at-bat was by John Jaha who silenced the crowd when he doubled bringing in two baserunners...Despite losing the series, Robin retains 2nd place - L. Castillo reached 6 consecutive times to start the series, and F. Thomas recorded his first hit of the year...Draft Day: Sunday, April 1, 2001.
(1/4) Future Wax swept back into 1st place last night, beating the Folders 14-6, 14-3 and 9-5. The Wax hit 15 homers for the series by 9 different players. Jason Kendall was 6 for 7. Matt had a chance to win the finale, taking a 5-3 lead into the bottom of the 8th. But Barry Bonds tied the game on a 2-out, 2-run HR, and Sheffield "thrust the dagger" (Randy's words) with a grand slam to win it in the 9th...Poor Matt continues to sell off his players and lose: Trade Update - North Dakota reacquires Jeff Cirillo from the Folders in exchange for 1st and 6th round draft picks.
(12/18) TTFKABC reclaimed first place over the weekend, riding the backs of Shawn Green 11 for 28 (.393), 7R, 4 HR, 8 RBI, and Derek Jeter 12 for 30 (.400), 6R, 3 HR, 7 RBI, 3 SB, 3BB (& fine defense). The tone was set in Game 1, when Robin won in the bottom of the 10th, 4-3, when Cliff Floyd trotted home on Danny Graves' wild pitch. Game 2 was a good old-fashioned pounding as BC chased Harnisch before he recorded an out (a big Stairs 3-run homer), and went up 9-4 after 3 innings. The bullpen hung on in true Strat-O ball fashion to win 12-9 (thanks to Pudge's 3-run blast). Omar Daal pitched a 5-hitter for Robin in game 3 to win 3-2, and run his record to 4-0 (3.86 ERA) and sweep New Orleans out of Oakdale Park. NO came back at home to win game 4, 8-5, led by Manny Ramirez's 1st inning 3-run homer. Robin came back to win game 5, 10-3, led by 2 homers from Sammy Sosa (who now has 11). Harold won game 6, 10-5, storming back from a 4-0 deficit (Bagwell HR). In game 7, Star of the Week Shawn Green broke a 3-3 tie in the top of the 8th with a 2-run homer off closer Troy Percival to put surpising TTFKABC (a pre-season 6th place pick) in 1st place at the halfway mark...Next weekend is a big weekend for many members of the SOMBILLA - some sort of federal holiday, I hear. Happy Holidays to all.
(12/11) In response to the Commissioner's e-mail "what happened last night?": A lot of seasonal bantering, some witty puns. Some drinking. Uncouth returning of half eaten snack food to the communal bowl. Rabid toilet seat covers, a moment of silence for "Kernel Klink", that's about it...On the 'diamond', Bagwell and Ramirez were both on fire for 'Nawlins, which took over first place, hitting a couple of HR's each. Colon pitched a complete game win in the first game. And in game four, Harold used 5 tired relievers (Rivera, T. Jones, Wagner, Graves and Percival) to bail out Leiter for the win...At the other extreme, the Folders are on pace to finish 11-45 to shatter the league's 20-year old mark for all-time single season worst record of 14-36 (translated to 15.7 wins in today's 56-game schedule).
(12/7) The Folders returned to action last night, after a two-month parental hiatus. Manila starting pitcher Andy Ashby, pitching on two months rest, completely shut down Future Wax in game one, pitching a four-hit complete game. Homers by McGwire, Hunter, and Ledee powered the Folders to an 8-2 win. The rest of the series was not so kind to the McArthur Dome fans, however as the Wax rallied to take the next three games (17-5, 11-4, and 13-4) to regain their place at the top of the standings. Manila's penchant for giving up the Big Inning threw a wet blanket over the Folder's return to action. Paul Byrd, unfairly boo'ed by the boisterous crowd (it was "Eli Lily Methamphedimine Day" at the McArthur Dome) for replacing Kevin Brown in the rotation, was shelled for five runs in the second as the Wax went on to win game two 17-4, with Pedro Martinez notching 12 strike-outs in 5 innings of work (before leaving with a 13-1 lead) in the second game. In the third game, the Folders evened the score at 4-4 in the bottom of the 7th on a Charles Johnson homer, but Griffey answered it in the 8th. Folder hopes faded as reliever Pat Mahomes, and his 27.00 ERA, gave up a single and 4 walks in the 9th, setting the table for former Folder Matt Williams' grand slam (Folder pitchers issued 13 free passes total in game 3). Game four saw ANOTHER Salami by Williams (along with a solo shot), this time Terry Mullholland was the waiter who served up the creampuff of a pitch.
(12/2) After a wild weekend, which saw the top two teams go down, Bay City took over first place for the first time since November, 1994 (when she gave birth to Jinny, now 6). Robin swept the Dewey Dells - winning both the 1st and 3rd games on walk-off homers (the actual scores of the games are unknwown at press time, rumors are that Eric has either lost the scoresheets or burned them). Eric was concerned about a letdown after the big trade, and BC was ready for L. Walker, now having faced him in 10 of her team's 23 games. Game 1's star was Cal Ripken, who hit a grand slam in the bottom of the 9th (Pudge Rodriguez, among the league's leading hitters, finally drew his 1st walk of the season in this, TTFKABC's 21st game). Game 2 matched look-a-likes David COne & Tom Glavine - with Cone pitching like he did a decade ago. The game also featured back ot back triples by Luis Castillo & Doug Glanville. Game 3 was another tight contest with Sosa leading off the bottom of the 10th for Robin with his 7th homer of the season.
(11/25) Sammy Sosa's sac fly in the bottom of the 6th inning of game one scored Jeter to give Robin a 4-3 lead. One out later, Cal Ripken, just back from an 8-game injury, tripled home two more runs to give Robin the victory (Koch nailing down the shaky save). In Game 2, Ripken's 2-run homer in the 7th cut a 6-3 lead to 6-5, and Durazo's pinch-hit single tied it in the 8th and sent the game to extra innings. ND hit 3 home runs in the 11th (M. Vaughn a pinch-hit 3-run homer, O'Neill and Santiago solo shots) to make it 11-6. But ND had only tired pitchers left, and two solo homers off Shuey in the bottom of the 11th made the final score 11-8. Robin broke open a 2-2 tie in the 8th inning of game 3 with an rbi double by Durazo and a 2-run homer by Shawn Green to win 5-2. ND won the final game, 9-1, with R. Johnson pitching a much needed CG for the beleagured bullpen, yielding just 5 hits.
(11/18) Luis Gonzalez' home run in the top of the 13th inning off Rich Garces was the difference for North Dakota to win 4-3 in the rubber game of a close 3-game set. R. Johnson, Hoffman, Shuey, Remlinger, Shaw and Shuey yielded just 8 hits over the 13 innings. Ventura's 2-run blast keyed a come-from behind 8-5 game 1 win for The Dells. R. Alomar's two-run triple (on a T 1-6, out otherwise) gave ND the lead for good 4-3 in game 2...Against Future Wax, O99 started strong, sending Moyer to the showers by scoring 8 runs in 1-1/3 innings. Future Wax battled back, and got within two runs several times, only to have Clint’s squad respond with more runs of their own, holding on for the win. The 99s came out swinging again in game two, and Clint had to be feeling in control with an early 2-0 series advantage. But the Wax rose to the challenge to take the next four in a row, including a 5 hit, 10 K, complete game shut out for Pedro Martinez over Kevin Brown (both aces made only 1 appearance in the series). Though reeling, the O99 righted themselves to take the final game at home. Stars for FW included Brian Giles (11 for 27, 4 HR, 10 RBI), Griffey and Nomar (2 HR @, 9 and 8 RBIs, respectively) and Jason Kendall (9 for 19, plus 3 walks)...The only comment from the other series is a quote from Tom, "it's a hard league"...All teams except for Harold and Robin are at the roster freeze...Happy Turkey day everyone!
(11/16) Yesterday's series can be characterized thusly: The Game had much love for Eric, and no love for Jeff. The Dells outscored A51 33 to 12, and led every game pretty much from start to finish. Even Jeff's "rally dice", those large wooden tumblers, didn't do the trick. All four Dell starters got wins, bullpen was spared for upcoming big series with North Dakota, and Jeff apparently has put Larry Walker on the trading block.
(11/12)Mike Mussina was the weekend star, twirling a complete game two-hit shutout for Jeff.
HOME
AWAY
Randy 7-3 .700 Randy 4-2 .667
Tom 6-3 .667 Robin 6-4
.600
Eric 7-4 .636 Arnie 4-3
.571
Jeff 7-4 .636 Tom
6-5 .545
Clint 6-5 .545 Clint 5-5 .500
Arnie 8-7 .533 Harold 5-6 .455
Robin 3-3 .500 Eric 3-4
.429
Matt 2-8 .200 Matt 3-11
.214
Harold --- ---- Jeff 1-6 .143
---------------- ----------------
TOTAL 46-37 .554
46-37 .446
(11/9) The Base Newsletter
(Translated from 10 beautiful concise glyphs to ape speak)
The inferior overachieving Manatees came into the base and through the vilest cheating and uncanny luck won the first game 9-3 highlighted by Abreu's 3 run home run and Burks who went 4 for 5 with 2 doubles and home run and a K.
After the Manatees went up 5-0 on Mike Mussina, it was time to break furniture. (After all a BP single (1-4) was made followed by a 2 base error by the superb defensive player Tatis and then Abreu hit a sacrafice fly (a failed BP homerun 1-13 that could have been a 3 run HR) to score the fifth run). As short stop Chipper Jones caught one in the antennae knocking him out for the series, the glorious home team came back to knock upstart Hudson out of the game in the third. Fernando Tatis hit a home run and a single for 4 RBIs to lead A51 to a 7-5 lead by the fifth. A51 reject Edgardo Alfonzo, hit a 2 run home run to tie the game in the sixth. The home team then had five innings of not being able to get anyone past first base while the Manatees left men on third base twice. The Manatees loaded the bases with no outs in the eleventh on three walks (one intentional after a double steal) and then after two Ks Ellis Burks pinch hit walk gave them a ill fated one run lead. Greers RBI single tied the game in the bottom of the 11th. The Manatees leaving men in scoring position continued to not make the timely hit and Greer ended the heart breaking game in the 13th with a 2 run ball park home run.
The Manatees, like the gutless wonders that they are, never recovered and were shut out 5-0 in the next game.
The A51 faithful see this as their first steps in a drive for the playoffs and the first step of the Manatees long decline into the Sombilla cellar. (Only time will tell.)
(11/5) Jason Kendall's 6 rbi's led Future Wax to a 10-inning 11-9 win over ND in game 1. Kendall's 4th inning grand salami put FW up 8-5. But Mo Vaughn's 6th inning pinch-hit 3-run homer put ND up 9-8. FW tied it on Giles' home run in the 7th, and star of the weekend Kendall doubled in two runs in the 10th to win it. Game 2 was a sterling pitching matchup - Pedro against R. Johnson, and it was 1-1 through 5. But the Wax, led by Piazza (2-run homer) and Juan Gonzalez (3 hits, 2-run homer) ended up pounding on Johnson and winning 9-1. ND won game 3, 6-3 on a combined 5-man 7-hitter...Information is scarce on the "other" series played over the weekend, although we have reports that no furniture was broken...ND, O99, and MF are at the roster freeze.
(11/3) Bernie Williams led North Dakota to a series win over New Orleans and into 4th place Thursday night. Star of the Week Williams, 11 for 16 (.688), 5 runs, 2 bb, 3 hr, 6 rbi, 2 do, tr, hit for the cycle in game 3, while going 5 for 5. In that game, won by ND, 10-2, Randy Johnson struck out 19, one shy of his 2-year old record (also against NO). From games 2-4, Bernie reached base nine consecutive times, with 8 hits and a walk...Kevin Sefcik's bottom of the 9th inning pinch-hit triple won game 1, 3-2...Constantinople and Future Wax combined for 58 runs in their 3 games at the Waxhome.
(10/27) Future Wax opened up a one-game lead over the pack Thursday night, taking two of three at Oakdale Park. In game 1, the Wax held a 5-2 lead going into the bottom of the 8th inning. But BC stormed back with 7 runs to take a 9-5 lead, headed into the 9th, capped by a 3-run pinch-hit homer by Matt Stairs. But in the top of the 9th, Sheffield led off with a homer, followed by Griffey's homer, followed by a single, strikeout and M. Williams' homer, follwed by Bonds' homer to make it 10-9. After another out, Karsay walked two and then gave up a 3-run homer to Star of the Week, Gary Sheffield, his 2nd homer of the inning and 3rd of the game, as FW held on to win the strange game 13-11. In all, the Was hit 10 home runs in the 3 games, including the finale - a 3-2 win with Cormier nailing down the save...Trade Update: The Dewey Dells have called up Albert Belle from their AAA club, the Manila Folders, in exchange for a 3rd round pick...This year's World Series roster winner was Constantinople with 5 participants (Alfonzo, B. Trammell, B. Jones, Brosius, Neagle). The fewest? For the third year in a row - Future Wax, with just one (Piazza). And people wonder why they have trouble in the postseason. Every other team in the league had either 3 or 4 World Series participants.
(10/21) Constantinople won the battle for 2nd place, pounding TTFKABC 13 to 3 in game 1. CN started innocuously by scoring a run on a double play, follwed by star of the week (and league's leading hitter), Carl Everett's (4 for 9, 2, runs, 5 rbis) rbi single to make it 2-0 against Cone. Cone, pitching like his 2000 self instead of his '99 card, became unraveled in the 2nd inning after two were out. He walked in two runs, gave up another rbi hit to Everett, and then served up a grand slam to A-Rod to make it 9-0 in the 2nd inning. In game 2, B. Anderson's hopmer made it 2-0 BC, but rbi hits by Burks and A-Rod tied it up at 2-2 after 1. A solo hr by Alfonzo and a 2-run shot by Varitek made it 6-2 after 3. S. Green's 2-run homer closed it to 6-5 in the 7th inning, but Urbina closed it out for his 3rd save (love those stats!). The first injury of Cal Ripken's SOMBILLA career was a doozy - he's out for 8 games. (Matt Stairs filled in admirably at 3rd). BC pounded CN 9-1 in the finale, led by Dreifort's 7+ innings of 2-hit ball...Trade Update: Jay Buhner and a 9th round pick goes from Dewey Dells to Area 51 for Reggie Sanders. Additionally, if Buhner makes Jeff's squad next year (2001-2002), then Eric gets his 9th pick and Jeff gets Eric's 10th pick in the March 2002 draft.
(10/14) It's a tough league. ND had the 4-3 edge in a matchup with Other 99 that was tough for both teams. And the defending champs resulting 8-7 record is good enough for 7th place. At Esquirita Park, O99's Chuck Finley (5-hitter) and Zimmerman (sv) outdueled Randy Johnson (3-hitter) in game 1, 3-1. In game 2, Andrew Jones' bottom ofthe 9th inning one-out blast off Hoffman tied the score at 6-6. ND won the game on Ramon Hernanez' 13th inning sac fly as Jeff Shaw shutout O99 over the final 3 2/3 innings. ND outlasted O99 in game 3, 13-7, blowing an 11-1 lead (Lankford with 6 rbi's). Three 9th-inning runs off closer Zimmerman gave ND a 5-3 come-from behind game 4 win. After flying to Gackle Park, O99 pounded Johnson in game 5, led by Javy Lopez's two 3-run homers, opening up an 11-2 lead. But M. Vaughn homered in his next 3 atbats to bring the score to 11-8 before ND just simply ran out of comeback time. In game 6, Saberhagen, Ritchie, Remlinger, Shuey, and Hoffman combined for a 6-hit shutout to outduel Kevin Brown and Seanez, 1-0. The finale was the exact opposite of Game 6. Homers by Surhoff, Nevin and Guerrero staked O. Hernandez to a 12-3 lead. Once again, an ND comeback falls just short as O99 wins by an ugly 15-12 score with the tying ND run on deck. Star of the week was Ray Lankford (11 for 26 (.423, 6 runs, 1 hr, 10rbi).
(10/12) The Dells manager noted 'It was a good ol' wax job, no doubt'. In game 1, but Hampton left his stuff behind in a Mellor Meadows locker and yielded a 7-run inning early on. Result: 11 runs for the Wax (including homer #3 for Giles) vs. just 1 run (on 6 hits) for the Dells. Game two was Eric's 'most exciting win in years'. A Ventura long-ball tied it up at 2-2 in the 6th. Then Eric put his bullpen to work, with a 5 reliever ensemble putting the lid on, narrowing escaping a bases-loaded situation in the 8th. The Dells then staged a two out rally in the 9th. A Baines single, followed by a Palmeiro double sent pinchrunner Curtis speeding for home: Giles throw to the plate was too late. Final score: 3-2 Dells. Game 3 looked a lot like game 1, featuring another early 7-run inning off Glavine and company for Hampton to win 12-1. Star of the week, former Folder Matt Williams (6 for 13, 2 HR, 7 RBIs, superb defense) helped Randy retain 1st place...In the other series, TTFKA Bay City kept pace by coining a new phrase - "Pudged" - as in Area 51 was Pudged in game 3 when I Rodriguez blocked a key run from scoring. Omar Daal also pitched well for Robin...Jeff's 10/21 bash has been blown up and cannot be rescheduled. All series will need to be made up separately.
(10/2) "Opening night" came with an announcement of Eric's new team name - The Dewey Dells ('a Faulkner character who is a lurid little girl who gets pregnant')... Future Wax took over first place with a hard-fought 4-game sweep over Area 51 in their home opener. Pedro Martinez hurled a season-opening gem, a 17 strike-out, 4-hit, complete-game shut-out. A Thome solo shot provided the game's only run, and both sides had men cut down at the plate. Four 2-run homers powered the Wax to an 8-7 victory in game two, with the margin of victory provided by defensive replacement Carlos Febles. By the 3rd game, the home team had already suffered 4 injuries (including one to a player called up because of a previous injury!) but still pulled off an 8-5 win. Thome's 3rd homer in 4 games (a 3-run shot) knotted the final game at 5 all in the 5th. The mysterious visitors loaded the bases in the 7th, but an inning-ending double-play ended the threat. Febles again played the hero, singling with 2-out in the bottom of the 8th, and then stole 2nd. Delucci, starting in CF for the injured Griffey, smashed an RBI-single that proved to be the game winner...Send your stats to Tom when you have em.
(9/24) Clint openened his team's campaign in similar fashion to everyone else who's played the Folders this month as Dave Nilsson (2 HR, 6 RBI in only 6 AB), Nevin, Henderson, Surhoff (4 rbi's each), and a complete game 4-hit shutout by O. Hernandez helped Clint win 5 of 7 (good for only 5th place against the Folders)...The team's name has been changed to "Other 99" from "Shithead" due to "too many kids around the table"...The biggest news of the weekend, however, was Other 99's acquisition of Kevin Brown from the Folders for 1st and 8th round picks and M. Ordonez...Other 99 plays in Esquerita Park (dimensions below)...Randy, Eric, Robin and Harold must announce their parks by Sun. 10/1 at the latest...Another trade was consummated over the weekend, with TTFKA Bay City acquiring Francisco Cordova and a 9th round pick from North Dakota for a 4th rounder...Many thanks to Matt for playing through the aggressive September schedule, and to Kathleen and "L'Enfant to be" for holding off. Now go forth and procreate and see you all in December!
Ballpark summary so far:
L R
Other 99
HR 1-17 HR 1-13
Esquerita Park
S 1-8 S 1-5
North Dakota
HR 1-15 HR 1-9
Gackle Park
S 1-10 S 1-5
Manila Folders
HR 1-11 HR 1-19
Douglas A. McArthurdome S 1-13
S 1-19
Constantinople
HR 1-11 HR 1-19
Mantee River Park
S 1-13 S 1-19
Metrowest
HR 1-13 HR 1-10
The Base
S 1-4 S 1-4
(9/21) Robin outscored Matt 28-11 in 3 games, during which the Folders used a total of 0 relievers. His starters were tired for 14 2/3 out of a possible 27 total innings...Ripken homered on 3 straight at bats; Sammy also connected 3 times...Adding injury to insult, Charles Johnson went down for the Folders, forcing Knobloch to catch...McGwire walked 7 times (none intentionally) with 0 homers...One-time worst SOMBILLA pick of all-time, Steve Karsay, Matt's 1st round pick in '95, got a save in his 1st SOMBILLA appearance for Robin...The official name of Matt's park is the Palm Computing Douglas A. MacArthur Dome...The fire sale has begun: The Folders unload Brad Radke to CN for F. Vina and a 4th round pick in 2001...The Folders mercifully end their September Follies on Saturday against Shithead...Last chance for your predictions - the newsletter goes out Sunday or Monday.
(9/19) (Per Metrowest reporters) Due to tight budget constraints selectman were unable to reach an agreement with MW management for a new stadium . As a result the team was sold to an unnamed psychotic, balding egomaniacal Belgium doctor for one million dollars (pinky extended backward by the side of mouth). The exact location of the stadium a.k.a. THE BASE visual link (http://www.nauticom.net/users/ata/satellite2.jpg) is somewhere outside Rachel Nevada. The A51 home page can be accessed at the following link (http://www.nauticom.net/users/ata/resources.html). Management strongly encourages a visit the concessions stand (A'le'inn - see home page for links). Seasons tickets still available however, once you enter you can't leave. The dimension of the park is strikingly similar Cincinnati's Riverfront stadium (L HR 1-13, R HR 1-10, singles 1-4 both sides)...The limped "wristed" Fernando Tatis went 8-13, 0.616, 1 HR, 4 RBI's and 3 walks. Mike Mussina pitched a complete game 2 ER win. In a disappointing note Rusty Greer (a.k.a Gusty Rear started the season in a 1-17 slump). The game appeared to exist but the origin of the attendees is currently classified...
(9/15) Game 1 saw Constantinople's Tim Hudson debut with a seven inning 1 ER performance for a win 13-1 to open the season. Clemens came back for the Folders, backed up by Brian Daubach (4 for 6 including 3 2-6 doubles and 5 RBIs) to beat up on Matt Clement 12-8. The rubber game was a back and forth battle that was decided by a 2 run homerun by Jason Giambi in the eighth. Urbina closed out the ninth for Mike Thurman for his first save in a 9-7 Game. Ellis Burks went 6 for 13 with 3 HRs and 5 RBIs. Everett was 7 for 12 with 4 RBIs and Abreu went 6 for 13 with 6 RBIs...Constantinople's field, Manatee River Park, used the same architect as Manila.
(9/13) Harold 'pounded' (his own words) the Folders last night in Manila's home opening series, winning all 3 games by scores of 14-7, 9-6, and 17-7. Bagwell had 4 homers and Ramirez 2. Even Neifi Perez, called up for an injury to Vizquel, smashed a 3-run shot for New Orleans. Matt's ballpark, the Douglas A. McArthur Dome, has the following dimensions: Lefty homers 1-11, singles 1-13; Righty homers 1-19, singles 1-19. Please remember to send your predictions and witty banter. So far there's been only one (half-hearted) response.
(9/7) The SOMBILLA's 21st campaign kicked off in style last night as young Jack Phelps threw out the first dice (a wild foul ball resulting in the first annual all-out search for a missing die). His next throw was also out of play, as it resulted in a Jeff Cirillo home-run off Randy Johnson. Jack continued rolling - a single, and then a 2-run homer for McGwire. Matt then inexplicably took the dice away from the youngster - and didn't score for the rest of the game as ND won the game going away, 9-3. The league's first test of the new blocking the plate rule occurred right away - in the bottom of the first when Charles Johnson caught Torii Hunter's throw and blocked a sprinting Robby Alomar (who would have scored under the old rules). Ryan Klesko earned star of the week honors for ND, with a 9 for 15 (.600), 3 homer, 7 rbi, 2 walk, 2 double, 4 run performance...North Dakota's newly designed park is, in an amazing coincidence, identical to Tampa Bay's (lefty homers 1-15, singles 1-10, righty homers 1-9, singles 1-5). Matt's, Tom's, Jeff's & Clint's ballparks will be announced as they play their home openers this month. All other teams will be required to choose/design their parks by October 1...After a summer of heated negotiations, Future Wax has announced that Randy has agreed to a one-year extension to his managerial contract.
(8/30) Greetings and welcome to the 2000-2001 season! As you all know, Matt & Kathleen are due for another kid on October 2. Matt has agreed (as the league has done in the past) to knock off some series in September before taking a 2-month leave of absence. The following schedule has been agreed to for September:
Wed. September 6 Matt at Arnie (4)
Tue. September 12 Harold at Matt (3)
Thu. September 14 Matt at Tom (3)
Mon. September 18 Matt at Jeff (4)
Wed. September 20 Robin at Matt (3)
Sat. September 23 Clint at Matt (4)
Matt at Clint (3)
Matt notes that indications are for an early birth (in violation of league rules), so he may not get to all of these. But in that case, his two month hiatus will end that much earlier so it all works out anyway.
I will be contacting managers next week to begin working on the October-December schedule. In the meantime, please start thinking about your predictions and have a fine Labor Day weekend!
The Commish
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* - This week in the SOMBILLA