Ok so I'm throwing a curveball tonight and only choosing one Top Performer. This Top Performer is not necessarily reflective on their performance in Round 4, but more a MVP for the winning team. With that said let's look at some of the top players from the T.Tech champion squad.
Baptiste
Bap hit 16 of 25 for a .640 average for the entire Cinco de Mayo Tournament. With 7 homeruns and 3 doubles Baptiste was a key factor in the T.Tech offense. In total he scored 12 runs and had 12 RBIs. Though Baptiste's numbers were impressive, he did not win the RBO Chronicle MVP Award for the Cinco de Mayo Tournament.
WCKDPERK
Woodpecker was fairly consistent on the mound and proved crucial in T.Tech's victories over some of the more high octane offenses that RBO has to offer. In 20 innings of work he picked up 20 strikeouts and held his opponents to a .474 batting average. WCKDPERK's ERA was a solid 7.65 for the entire Cinco de Mayo Tournament. With fairly solid pitching stats, WCKDPERK was just out done by one player.
gatyopin2
gatyopin2 was a man on a mission for the Cinco de Mayo Tournament. With perhaps some of the most inhuman numbers ever put up for a tournament gatyopin2 collected 25 hits in 27 at bats for a .926 batting average. His 8 homeruns, 21 RBIs, and 16 runs, led all players in the Cinco de Mayo Tournament. I don't think anyone can overlook this performance and it has got to rank up with some of the best of all-time.
Props to gatyopin2 for batting better than a hacker on steroids and for winning the RBO Chronicle's MVP Award for the Cinco de Mayo Tournament.
Cinco De Mayo: Top Performer
Cinco De Mayo: Finals Recap
Heart. Fire. Determination. Dedication. All words you would use to describe a championship team. Whether you agree with the way either team carries itself, both teams have carried themselves with the neccesary characteristics to win. The Cinco De Mayo prize tournament would come to be an ultimate success. Regardless of your opinion of the game, everyone wakes up for tournaments and gives 110%. At the end of the day, it was not about the sunglasses or Rotowire subscription for either of these teams, it was about pride. Both teams looked to make a name for themselves and they ultimately did. Which team came out on top?
Top 1 - T.Tech Hitting
The T.Tech manager Baptiste and last game's star gatyopin both flied out to start the game. SniperX had great command and worked low extremely well to start. The only hard hit ball in the 1-2-3 inning was a linedrive to BearGryll that was caught by ToyBoy (of course) in Left Field.
Bottom 1 - Hybrids Hitting
WCKDPRK came out tonight a man on a mission. Struggling mightily lately, the young stud pitcher pitched a 1-2-3 bottom of the first to match SniperX. Hell, he might have pushed himself further past him. HAVERFORD grounded out to second base to start off, and OLDZERO would fly out. WCKDPRK would then impressively strike out ToyBoy to end the frame 0-0 after 1.
Top 2 - T.Tech
SniperX would retire DanTheMan, as he started off the game retiring 4 straight hitters. Against WCKDPRK, the opposing pitcher, he gave up a hard single to RF. Baptiste followed sui with a single to RF of his own, putting runners on first and third with 1 out. GatyoPin would also single to RF on a soft grounder that made it through. SniperX was unable to retire WCKDPRK, and it haunted him in the Top of the second as he came around to score. Beargryll made it 4 straight singles putting runners on first and third again. DantheMan tried to keep the streak going, but his groundout to third only induced an out at home. With 2 outs and a runner in scoring position WCKDPRK came up again. And for the second time, WCKDPRK drove in the run helping his own cause. SniperX, apparently angered, would come back and strike out Baptiste to end the threat. 2-0 T.Tech.
Bottom 2 - Hybrids
GAWD singled off of WCKDPRK to end his consecutive out streak, but WCKDPRK would continue to face the minimum as he would get a 4-3 double play off the bat of SniperX. WCKDPRK would then strike out leadoff hitter HAVERFORD to continue an impressive outing. 2-0 T.Tech after 2.
Top 3 - T.Tech
The top of the third saw SniperX continue to struggle. Gatyopin left the ballpark as he continued to impress the spectators in RBO stadium tonight. SniperX would retire BearGryll and WCKDPRK in order, but would then fail to keep manager Baptiste in the yard. Looking to keep the damage to a minimum, SniperX walked gatyopin. The next batter, BearGryll, singled to RF but was gunned out by GAWD trying to run back to first base. 4-0 T.Tech.
Bottom 3 - Hybrids
Boy was WCKDPRK impressive. After giving up a single to OLDZERO, he got Toyboy to ground out. The hot GAWD, singled as well to put runners on first and second. SniperX bunted, an unconventional play with 1 out. WCKDPRK then buckled down and struck out HAVERFORD to end the threat. 4-0 Tech after 3 innings.
Top 4 - T.Tech
SniperX recovered well as he did not allow anything to cross the plate in the 4th. His defense seemed to find a groove and looked to pick up their ace. The Hybrids pitcher was now in clean-up mode, trying to contain the damage.
Bottom 4 - Hybrids
WCKDPRK when in confidently into the bottom of the 4th, but the Swedish Stallion and his sidekick GAWD both homered to get that Hybrids offense going. The problem? No one else was hitting. 4-2 T.Tech.
Top 5 - T.Tech
Now it was time for SniperX to not let anyone cross the plate. He knew he could not afford to give up any more runs because his offense was rather pedestrian tonight. Unfortunately, ABSMOKE and DANTHEMAN had other plans. ABSMOKE singled and DANTHEMAN drove him all the way home with a double. WCKDPERK would ground out, but got the job done to make it a 6-2 ballgame. SniperX settled down and retired Baptiste but the damage was apparently done.
Bottom 5 - Hybrids
WCKDPRK refused to give up anything to HYBRIDS as he retired the side without much of a problem. It was 6-2 heading into Tech's final frame.
Top 6 - T.Tech
Nothing doing for Tech here. 6-2 heading into the final inning.
Bottom 6 - Hybrids
With all the criticism surrounding Tech's pitching and all the focus on their offense, WCKDPRK came up HUGE. After allowing a solo homerun to Oldzero to cut the deficit to 3, WCKDPRK rebounded and struck out the final hitter - looking. A great game for WCKDPRK. Congrats to Tech on an amazing tournament and congrats to Hybrids for a great game as well.
I caught up with an upset ToyBoy. We all know RBO is not the smoothest of games and he was awfully upset about the gameplay issues throughout:
Hybrids Interview - Toyboy
Melky: You played close games the whole tournament, this time you didn't manage to come through, what was different?
Toyboy: In the first 3 games there was no lag and in this last one there was spike/lag/disconnects. And of course, our hitting wasn't the best. We didn't produce as well as we should. And our defense in some places just didn't work.
Melky: I know it is very tough to play in those situations and I am sorry to hear that. What was WCKDPRK doing that made him so effective?
Toyboy: Other then he pitched a realy good game and we had trouble with the lag spikes. Still his pitching style didnt suit us.
Melky: The game seemed to be competitive the whole way through, are you proud of the way your team fought to stay in it?
Toyboy: Yes, we showed that we arent a team that gives away runs for free. Our Defense was good but we need to work on it a little more and our offense need to produce more.
Melky: How does this game prepare you for future tournaments?
Toyboy: As we will have a Mangement change and we got more hitters to our team we will have more changes soon. Then it will be a lot difference than it had been in this tournement. We will try a diffrent style and see how that will work.
Melky: When you look back at this game, what will you remember most?
Toyboy: My perfect first inn with 3 catches and how SniperX keept the ball inside the park, not letting them score high run totals like they have done against the other teams on the road to the finals.
Melky: Anything to say to T.Tech?
Toyboy: Thx for a good game i hope the sunglasses fits all of your teammates and Gj to T.Tech pitcher WCKDPRK. Will see you in next tournament for revenge.
Melky: Thank you Toyboy.
Toyboy: Your welcome.
T.Tech Interview - Baptiste and Company
Melky: Ready for the interview Baptiste?
Baptiste: Yes, but First of i would like to thank our Fans For there support and always keeping our heads up. I want to thank Sayheykid W00ds and N8te for Being Team players. Lots of people doubted us due to our inexperience but we were never let up in crunch time. Our D was solid and Perk pitched a hell of a game.
Manny73: As Co-Manager of T.Tech I want to thank everyone that showed up to play and keeping thier cool during a few stressful games and keeping on the same page with the rest of the team. Bap and I spent hours thinking and re-thinking starters and subs and everyone worked as a team not individuals. Again Great job everyone!
Melky: That's great *laughs*, So Baptiste, how proud of you of WCKDPRK? He rebounded extremely well.
Baptiste: Very he pitched his Heart out.
Melky: Any words from you WCKDPRK?
WCKDPRK: I just wanna thank my defense for making me look good out there and taking all the pressure off along with offense for keeping ahead for most of the games. I especially want to thank you guys for not getting on me when I had the rough spots ..
Melky: You and Gat seemed to constantly come up big with huge homeruns the whole tournament, how do you hit so well in tournament play?
Baptiste: As I told you before, every game...breathe in and breathe out. Try to keep it fun when you're down.
Melky: Well I wanted to congratulate you and wish you luck in the future. Do you have anything to say to Hybrids?
Baptiste: Very Good Game Hybrids. SniperX pitched a hell of a game, he had my number until the third.
Manny73 in the background: Tell SniperX Manny and ABSMOKE will buy him a beer when we meet up.
WCKDPRK: Tell Sniper much respect.
Melky: Thank you for giving me the time to interview you. Enjoy your win.
Baptiste: One more time I just want to mention how important N8te, W00ds15 and Sayheykid are to this team. They are really great leaders in the clubhouse. You do a great job with the site. Thank You.
Congrats to T.TECH!!!! Look out for Newberts Top Performers and the Awards for this tournament!
Prediction RESULTS!!!
Melky 1-0
Newbert 0-1
Thank you for reading.
Cinco De Mayo: Round 3 Top Performers
With things winding down in the Cinco de Mayo tournament one would think my choices for a Top Performer would be dwindling...au contraire! With the pressure building as teams get closer and closer to those RotoWire subscriptions and high performance sunglasses, players begin to step it up. Both my picks for this round's studs were difficultly chosen due to all the great candidates.
Top Performer: Hitting
- SayheyKid, T.Tech
My original prediction for this game was for HeadAke to hit a walkoff homerun. After I realized that Carnage was the away team, I had to change that. Well, my original prediction of a walkoff homer was spot on. It was SayheyKid who did the damage for T.Tech in the bottom of the 7th inning. For the 2nd straight round, my Top Performer on the hitting side has been a player who hit a walkoff homer. Maybe I'm a little unfair to others, but a walkoff homerun just stands out to me. Nothing speaks more about a player than the ability to step up and get the job done when it counts.
Props to Sayheykid of T.Tech for notching his 1st career Top Performer Award.
Top Performer: Pitching
- SniperX, Hybrids
SniperX may have one too many enemies in the RBO community, but his teammates are sure willing to ignore it when he puts up All-Aces type performances. SniperX got the last laugh against Bombers as he dominated the rough lineup, holding them to just 3 runs in 6 innings of work. Look for SniperX to make a strong push for his Swedish teammates in the finals. T.Tech is very familiar with SniperX, but that shouldn't limit him in his pitching efforts.
Props to SniperX for winning his 1st career Top Performer Award.
Cinco De Mayo: Final Four Wrap
The Final Four Round of the Cinco de Mayo tournament featured two experienced pitchers and two relatively new pitchers to the elite tournament scene. That resulted in an incredibly gut-wrenching pitcher's duel, and an awe inspiring offensive war.
IPWN, was given the nod for the Bronx based Bombers while SniperX was once again given the start over Pesto. The experienced IPWN (Goblin) has been around since UBO2, and the trust he has developed from his teammates gives him an added edge. SniperX on the other hand has been a cancer to his team, but his talent in the AS league and in the early rounds of this tournament has put his team in an almost Terrell Owens situation. Live with the cancer because he is just good.
The starters in the second game mirrored those in the first game. Megatron is an experienced Elite pitcher now but struggles with his consistency. Megatron has one of the toughest jobs in all of RBO, as he manages, hits, and pitches. WCKDPRK is a lot less reliable at this point in his career. He has shown flashes of excellence but appears hittable at times. It was also a rookie vs a veteran in this matchup. On to the games...
Bombers vs Hybrids
Bombers Starting Lineup
d1nonly2
Jiraiya
TheMan
EduaNYC
IPWN
Hybrids Starting Lineup
HAVERFORD
OLDZERO
ToyBoy
GAWD
SniperX
The pitcher's duel between Bombers and Hybrids kept both managers on their toes. I will do my best to recap the game as specifically as possible:
Top 1 - Hybrids
The Hybrids were shut down quietly by the solid pitching of IPWN. The Bombers star continued his dominance of elite league hitters despite not playing much in tournaments lately. Without Frogger, TheMan slotted into Right Field and the Bombers defense looked strong.
Bottom 1 - Bombers
D1nonly2 homered the second pitch of the ballgame off of SniperX to take a 1-0 lead. SniperX rebounded well by closing down the innings with no further damage done. SniperX continued his little shuffle distracting the Bombers hitters.
Top 2 - Hybrids
The second inning saw the awakening of the Hybrids offense. GAWD heated up with a game tying solo homerun. OLDZERO would follow with a single, as ToyBoy would then homer to make the game a 3-2 duel after the top of the 2nd. IPWN settled down and would not surrender any more runs in the second.
Bottom 2 - Bombers
SniperX continued the "SniperX Shuffle" dazzling the fans with impressive stuff. He would shut down the Bombers in the second with great defense. He pitched around a hit and was unaffected by the pressure. This is pretty commendable considering the pressure SniperX has. If he does not perform, the community will bash him. He seems to thrive off of this.
Top 3 - Hybrids
IPWN continued to rebound by shutting down Hybrids in the third. He seems to have developed some skin as he used to fold after giving up runs.
Bottom 3 - Bombers
With one out, SniperX got IPWN to pop out. Because of a rain delay, the game had to restart. After the delay, SniperX would induce a ground out, apparently rejuvinated after the delay.
Top 4 - Hybrids
IPWN would shut down the Hybrids again, putting the 2nd inning completely behind him. His manager entrusted him with the game by assuring him he would come out for the fifth after he finally seemed to find a groove
Bottom 4 - Bombers
SniperX did not want to surrender any type of runs tonight. Not to be outdone, he shut down the very tough Bombers lineup in the bottom half of the 4th.
Top 5 - Hybrids
Now really pitching effectively, IPWN shut down the Hybrids offense in the top of the 5th making it 3 consecutive scoreless innings. With his offense struggling, IPWN was able to focus solely on pitching.
Bottom 5 - Bombers
SniperX seemed to get stronger as the game went on. No offense at all for a normally potent Bombers ballclub. They did manage to string together two gappers and a dink that fell through. IPWN was up with the bases loaded and 2 men out and hit a line shot to the gap in LCF. ToyBoy made a magnificent catch which was clearly the play of the game.
Top 6 - Hybrids
IPWN was sent out for the top of the 6th as he seemed to have figured out the Hybrids' offense. Unfortunately, what he did find was the hot Swedish slugger GAWD. After a single by ToyBoy, GAWD homered to give his pitcher some insurance. 5-2 Hybrids after 6.
Bottom 6 - Bombers
The Hybrids took the field one last time as SniperX surrendered one run on another homerun by d1nonly2. That was that as the Hybrids moved on to the finals of the Cinco De Mayo Tournament.
I caught up with the winning and losing managers for two very interesting interviews:
Bombers Interview - KMAN
Melky: Your first managerial job. How did it feel?
KMAN: Well its a learning process. I feel i've got alot more figured out now with the team i have then when i started. That cant be bad
Melky: You chose to go with IPWN tonight after u pitched a gem last night and hit 3 homeruns. Do you go with a rotation?
KMAN: No i don't have a rotation. I try and feel a game out as best i can. IPWN is just as big of a threat on the hill as i am ..he's proven that now.
Melky: What do you take from this tournament?
KMAN: Well ive learned to trust your (Melky) own judgement managing. One big change that i wont specificly name may have been the difference in the game. So im going to take that and all the rest ive learned and move to league which matters most in this organization.
Melky: Any words for Hybrids?
KMAN: lol i'll be careful here as last time you quoted my joke....
Melky: *laughs*
KMAN: i'll just say gg, hope next game goes smoother and wow Toyboy nice fielding and hitting
Melky:thx for the interview as always
KMAN:yep not a problem
Hybrids Interview - ToyBoy
Melky: You defeated Bombers and Empire and arguably had the toughest road to the finals, what do you think when you look back at the teams you beat?
ToyBoy: The first game against Empire we were pumped and we told ourselfves that we have beaten them before and we can do it again. And against Bombers we knew that they were not going to be easy but that we had a better chance than we gave ourself credit for. First time in a long time i was nervous in a game
Melky: How do you manage SniperX?
ToyBoy: That's easy. We tell him to be calm and focus and just do his thing. He knows he has a good defense behind him
Melky: Do u have anything to say to Bombers?
ToyBoy: Other than Thanks for a Great Game that made me be on my toes, no.
Melky: You are playing T.Tech in the next round. They scored over 40 runs the last 2 games combined. Are you afraid at all?
ToyBoy: Not at all, we are a team that likes close scoring games and with the pitcher and defense we have on the team, i dont think they will score much
Melky: Thanks a lot for your time ToyBoy
ToyBoy: You are welcome.
So Hybrids win and move on to the Finals. A very impressive game for a surprising team.
Final Score: Hybrids 6 , Bombers 3
Player of the Game: GAWD
Next Game: vs T.Tech
Carnage vs T.Tech
T.Tech Starting Lineup
gatyopin2
ABSmoke
W00ds15
DantheMan
WCKDPRK
Carnage Starting Lineup
Wiggy
bNutz
Ebola
Headake
Megatron
Want to know what impressive is? How about a 15-14 game that was capped off by a walk off homer by the guy who ended up having to pitch because the winning team did not have any more pitchers. Below is the best play by play anyone at the chronicle could muster:
Top 1 - Carnage
WCKDPRK needed to give his team a solid game and got off to a rocky start. Wiggy clearly was a man amongst boys tonight helping Carnage jump out to an early 3-0 lead. Carnage did it the old fashion way, showing power and stringing together a couple of hits
Bottom 1 - T.Tech
Megatron once again struggled. He gave up homeruns to gatyopin2 and the recently turning 23 year old ABSMOKE. It was 4-3 after 1, in what was shaping up to be a heck of an offensive ball game.
Top 2 - Carnage
Carnage faultered in the second inning as WCKDPRK pitched well. He shut down an obviously powerful lineup. Carnage was getting hits, but the players in the middle were not coming through.
Bottom 2 - T.Tech
W00ds15 put himself on the tournament map with a solo homerun. Megatron would settle down and hold the game at 5-3 after 2 innings.
Top 3 - Carnage
Once again, WCKDPRK held Carnage scoreless. Two straight scoreless innings, pitching around hits, and dealing with the pressure of his first Final Four in elite play. Great outing for WCKDPRK after his rocky first inning.
Bottom 3 - T.Tech
Megatron seemed to have settled down. He would not allow a run in the bottom of the third. The first full scoreless inning of the game.
Top 4 - Carnage
Wiggy and Headake came out and proved to the world why NEWBert and I are so high on them. The two bright spots in the Carnage lineup helped Carnage pull ahead 7-5 as WCKDPRK was finally replaced with kiku. A tough outing for the young T.Tech ace.
Bottom 4 - T.Tech
Baptiste came up big as the manager subbed in and hit a 3 run homerun that fueled his team. The game was now 8-7 and T.Tech regained all lost confidence. Megatron on the other hand lost his. He managed to get out of the inning rather disappointed.
Top 5 - Carnage
Nothing doing for Carnage off of kiku. Unfortunately, kiku was lost due to bugging himself with a low knuckle and Ebola lagged out. The inning would end with a 4v4 game going on.
Bottom 5 - T.Tech
gatyopin2 had Carnage's number. Another homerun for gat gave T.Tech a 9-7 lead. Megatron did not allow another run to cross the plate in the bottom of the 5th. SayHeyKid was set to take the mound in the Top of the 6th.
Top 6 - Carnage
Carnage had one final push in tonights game. Wiggy and HeadAke again attacked the non-pitcher with the help of their teammates and made it a 13-10 ball game. A safe lead?
Bottom 6 - T.Tech
Megatron failed to hold the lead as he gave up a 2 out 3 run homerun to gatyopin2, the star of the game clearly. It was 13-13 going into the top of the 7th.
Top 7 - Carnage
Subbing himself out, Megatron brought in bden2. Another clutch homerun gave Carnage a 14-13. Unfortunately, they were not the home team.
Bottom 7 - T.Tech
N8te would tie the game off of Wiggy in the Bottom of the 7th. A valiant effort, Wiggy was unable to keep the lead. With a 14-14 game, the man who was forced to pitch, SayHey, walked off with a solo homerun. T.Tech celebrated on vent ecstatically.
A great game by both teams. I caught up with the losing manager, Megatron, first for a post game interview:
Carnage Interview - Megatron
Melky: Tough loss tonight Mega, great game by the way.
Mega: thanks
Melky: You played an amazing tournament through the obvious stresses of managing, pitching and hitting. How much does that affect your play?
Mega: It shouldn't affect my play too much...I think as a pitcher in UBO, you kinda crave that kinda pressure. Besides the occasional fire - look after, I think I can do a somewhat decent job of separating the stress from the fun and working around it
Melky: what was the difference between the Flight game where u were lights out, and the past two games where u struggled?
Mega: Ran into a tank of a hitter in both games. Ensferum and Gatyopin, they really had my number
Melky: You have been making amazing managerial decisions with late inning substitutions, how much of Majewicz and bden's clutch performance do u credit yourself for?
Mega: I think the changes were pretty much common sense when you looked at the situations we were in. We had some guys that were struggling and really those two guys just made me look good. I can't take too much credit for that
Melky: Whay do you take from this tournament? Positives? Negatives?
Mega: Definetly it was a positive tournament, I mean a lot of big name teams didn't make it through so we can't feel too bad about losing by a run in extras.
Melky: Well you did great. Good luck in the future.
Mega: Thank You, later mate.
T.Tech Interview - BaPtIste
Melky: How much confidence do you have in WCKDPRK, you seem to throw him out there every game no matter how hard he is hit.
BapTisTe: i feel perk can get the job done thats y he is in there
Melky: Your offense has scored over 40 runs the last two games, SniperX shut down a solid Bombers offense tonight , how confident are u that u can hit him
BapTisTe: he is a very good pitcher but my guys seem to be on the ball everytime i put them in. We play everyone no matter what. Manny decided to stay out tonight for example.
Melky: Manny decided to sit out?
BapTisTe: yes
Melky: why?
BapTisTe: to allow everyone a chace to play
Melky: that is really risky in a prize tourney. You had a big homerun that seemed to put some fire under your team, do you feel they play better when you are in the game?
BapTisTe: We work as a unit. With or without me my guys can get the job done with or without me
Melky: Do you have any words for Carnage?
BapTisTe: One of our best games that have been played in the New Rbo
Melky: well thank you again baptiste it is always a pleasure to interview you. Good luck tomorrow
BapTisTe: thank you
T.Tech wins in impressive fashion. It will be interesting to see if their offense can continue to produce.
Final Score: T.Tech 15 , Carnage 14 - 7 innings
Player of the Game: GatYoPin2
Next Game: vs Hybrids
Now...Prediction Review!!!
Newbert - 0-2
Melky - 1-1
Previews up soon. Great round. Thank you for the interviews and recaps d1nonly2, Kman, ToyBoy, Baptiste, ABSMOKE, Megatron.
Cinco De Mayo: Final Four Previews
It's prediction time again, and you all know what that means, another chance to embarrass NewBert at RBO pick-em. Yes I have picked Empire/Bombers in every game they have played, but were they really bad picks? (Hybrids,RWNL,FlightNL were the opponents). Anyway, we saw a lot of great action last night and we are now down to four teams looking to take home Rotowire.com subscriptions and some cool sunglasses http://jroptics.com/.
Bombers vs Hybrids
I'm not even sure if it's that sunny in Sweden, but Toyboy will try and win himself some sunglasses nonetheless. Struggling with the stick against Junior03 last night, ToyBoy did not let it effect his defense, as the Swedish Stallion impressed once again in LF. The Hybrids manager needs GAWD to remain consistent. GAWD has shown flashes of becoming a consistent elite hitter but tends to chase and let himself be contained. Look for Toyboy and Gawd to try and hit either IPWN/KMAN of the Bombers. LordSmrf has also quietly been a consistent presence in that lineup. Hybrids will need all hands on deck to defeat Bombers tonight.
SniperX pitched his first solid Elite league game last night against Masters. He struck out 10 masters hitters in 7 innings of work. That performance puts him in the lead for "K/9" in the tournament. How did he do it? While I was interviewing Junior03 last night, the Masters manager, he brought up what the community will call "The SniperX shuffle". Somewhat like icing a hitter, SniperX steps off the mound and runs around after every pitch. Certainly not illegal, but Bombers hitters should not have a problem hitting through SniperX's 2-step. Nevertheless, the Hybrids Ace looks to impress more with a similar performance against Bombers.
Frogger surprised us all by showing up and playing in the 12-1 rout of RWNL, but today, he is definitely not going to be able to make it. It seems as if playing through his injuries made them significantly worse, so Frogger will not be manning RF tonight. Expect Big123 or EduaNYC to take the reigns in his place. SniperX has to hope that TheMan cools of before game time. Arguably one of the streakiest hitters in the game, TheMan has the ability to build on past great games with his incredible power to all fields. Jiraiya, the Dutch God of LF, looks to impressively man LF again. It should be a showdown of two of the best European Left Fielders tonight. Newly acquired D1Nonly2 has fit right in. The slender Dominican born outfielder was recruited for his defense and has surprised Bombers interim manager KMAN with his stick.
KMAN has quite the decision to make. Every manager would love to have this problem. Do you start IPWN (6ip 3 ER vs FlightNL) or yourself (6 IP 1 ER vs RWNL). The game may very well be decided by who takes the mound tonight but this reporter will go out on a limb and guess IPWN will get the start.
Melky's Prediction: Bombers 14 , Hybrids 6
Newbert's Prediction: Bombers 10, Hybrids 5
Melky's Players to Watch: Jiraiya , ToyBoy
Newbert's Players to Watch: TheMan, GAWD
T.Tech vs Carnage - Game of the Day
Spend some time on both of these teams ventrilo servers and you will come out thinking one thing. These teams are identical. Their vent servers are a closed, passworded safe-haven for their members. Not more than 12 people are on at once, and since Rage and Carnage cut ties it was relatively quiet. They laughed and joked with each other but remained a serious and mature demeanor. They gave each other crap and listening to another team communicate is interesting from the eyes of a manager. Both of these teams are incredibly tight-knit groups, and every one of the players who took the field last night was on vent. These two teams both feature a pitcher than can either shut you down, or get hit around. Both of these teams feature streaky offences and solid defense. This is going to be one hell of a game.
Why T.Tech will win:
T.Tech will win because somehow WCKDPERK was able to go 6 innings. He was able to control his stamina and hold Carnage to under 6 runs. In order for T.Tech to win, WCKDPERK can not choke under pressure, he can not falter like most rookie tournament pitchers do. T.Tech will hit, they always do, and after a 27 run outburst that was a league and tournament record, WCKDPERK should feel pretty good about his offense right now. In order for T.Tech to win, WCKDPERK needs to come up big.
Why Carnage will win:
Megatron comes out and pitches a gem as he did against flight. He also homers and helps his team out with his stick. In order for Carnage to win, Majewicz can not be subbed in for Ebola, because that means Ebola is struggling. Ebola needs to show why he is one of the better hitters in tournament play and he can not struggle in order for Carnage to win. bNutz has to continue to hit and hit well and this deep Carnage offense will be just fine.
Interviewing both team managers last night and they were pretty confident about the next round. It should be interesting to see if their players are as confident as they were. I'm going to go with T.Tech. T.Tech has no worries right now and all they need to do is "show up" as their manager suggested last night. Carnage has a lot on their plate. They played a close game with ReJected but clearly have some in-house issues distracting their ace and manager Megatron.
Melky's Prediction: T.Tech 7 , Carnage 4
Newbert's Prediction: Carnage 16, T.Tech 9 (HeadAke runs wild over the T.Tech pitching and knocks 4 HR's in the winning effort)
Melky's Players to Watch: ABSMOKE , Megatron
Newbert's Players to Watch: HeadAke, Baptiste
Good luck to all the final four teams!
Cinco De Mayo: Round 2 Top Performers
Well Round 2 is in the books, so it's time for me to dish out my 2nd set of Top Performer awards. Once again there were several viable candidates to recieve each award, but there are only 2 awards in total to give out.
Top Performer: Hitting
- Majewicz, Carnage
One of Megatron's newer acquisitions, Majewicz earned his stripes in a close win against ReJected. Denied playing time for the entire first 5 innings, Majewicz was subbed into a tie game in the bottom of the 6th. Unphased by the apparent pressure of the tie game, Majewicz did what he does best; beat the crap out of the ball. Majewicz hit that clutch homer that Carnage needed to continue their run at the sunglasses/RotoWire subscriptions. Though Majewicz only saw 1 at bat in Round 2, he'll certainly see a few more at bats in Round 3.
Props to Majewicz for winning his 1st Top Performer Award.
Top Performer: Pitching
-KMAN, Bombers
KMAN met a decent RW NL squad in Round 2. Though the Bombers took a large 1st inning lead, KMAN never let up. He notched 4 strikeouts and pitched a complete game. One of the more impressive pitching performances in recent times, KMAN took a shutout into the 6th inning. Unfortunately, RW NL found a small groove and strung together a few hits past the AI before Day knocked a ball to the outfield that scored 1. KMAN's shutout was lost possibly by the mid-inning exit of Senzafne, but either way he's this round's Top Performer. KMAN was also a candidate for this round's hitting Top Performer award as he blasted 3 HR's in the Bombers' 12-1 victory.
Props to KMAN for picking up his 1st career Top Performer Award.
Round 2: Cindo De Mayo Recap
Melky here, so I fared a lot better in my predictions. Here are the recaps:
Bombers vs RotowireNL
The second round of the Cinco De Mayo tournament for the Bombers proved to be just as succesful as the first. Facing a RWNL team who was given a bye in the first round, KMAN and the Bombers set out to move on to the Final Four and did so in emphatic fashion.
The pitching matchup was one that suggested a pitcher's duel. KMAN took the ball from IPWN against Coug. KMAN did not disappoint. With 4 strikeouts, the former All Aces winner dazzled taking a complete game into the sixth inning. Not only was it a complete game, it was a complete game shutout. The defense was as good as that statement suggests, as Jiraiya might challenge for RBO Chronicles Diamond Glove aware in the outfield. Frogger, who was not supposed to play in tonights game, recovered quickly from his surgery and played a magnificent Right Field. On call the whole night, IPWN sat the bench as he watched KMAN pitch 6 innings of 1 run ball. The only blunder came off the bat of RWNL manager Day who drove in a run.
Bombers scored 5 runs in the first, as KMAN took Coug deep in the opening frame. TheMan followed with a pair of homeruns of his own off reliever ChungFX. Not to be outdone, Jiraiya added on his daily tournament homerun from the heart of Deutshland. 1000 time Elite League MVP runner up Frogger also homered in the game. RedK would get aboard in the final frame only to get picked off and end the game.
The star of the game was KMAN. Pitching 6 solid innings and hitting 3 homeruns and driving in 6 rbis. I caught up with KMAN to talk about his team and the game afterwards:
Melky: How did you go about preparing for this game?
KMAN: I smoked a lot of weed and I worked really hard. Batting practice with the guys helped.
Melky: That's unconventional, did you ever contemplate starting IPWN tonight? He did pitch a great game in the first round
KMAN: IPWN couldn't make it. I knew i had to keep my pitches where i wanted them and locate well. Me and Frogger spoke about the gameplan before the game. Wasn't trying to strike anyone out, just make it through 6.
Melky: Well you did a great job. Any words for RWNL?
KMAN: Well ide like to say its nice to play with a team that can best us on any given night, but lose gracefully. The latter is important those guys are a class act.
Melky: Any thoughts on Hybrids? You face them in the next round and they did beat Empire.
KMAN: I won't lie, I am coming out harder for them knowing they did beat my teammates. But it should be a great game.
Melky: Well thanks KMAN
KMAN: No problem, anytime
That was interim manager KMAN after a great game today. RWNL faltered and it has a lot to do with activity. You see great elite pitchers like Coug and Boget struggle because they are not familiar with the patch. I would not be concerned if i was Rotowire as they should improve the more they play.
Final Score: Bombers 12 , RWNL 1
Next Game: vs Hybrids
Player of the Game: KMAN
Hybrids vs Masters
Both of these teams upset quality elite league teams last night and did not disappoint, playing a very close game that would certainly be up for the debate as far as Game of the Day is concerned. Hybrids went into the game with a win over Empire, and Masters looked to build on their victory over Rotowire.
Junior03 started what looked to be a special game, shutting out Hybrids through 3 innings. BigJuddd homered twice to give Masters a 4-0 lead. BigJuddd who was just on the team for this tournament, really made quite the splash. In the 4th, Junior's shutout ended by giving up a 2 run homerun to GAWD. That cut the lead to 4-2. Hybrids would tack on one more and make it 4-3 taking it into the 5th.
Wagon was subbed in for Masters and homered to make it a 5-3 ballgame. As SniperX was beginning to struggle. Throughout the game, SniperX succesfully utilized the "SniperX shuffle", distracting Masters hitters by stepping off the mound on every pitch.
In the 6th, Junior gave up back to back homeruns to tie the game up at 5. He would bring in Jeter994 to end the threat.
The game would go into extras, as the Hybrids defense of ToyBoy and God robbed Junior and company of hits in the gap that were nearly homers. They would go on to homer in the top half of the 7th and hold down Masters in the bottom half. A great game.
No Hybrids players were available for an interview so I caught up with the losing Manager:
Melky: How did it feel to come out and pitch 3 shutout innings, be backed up by 2 homeruns by BigJuddd and build early momentum after your great day last night?
Junior03: It was great i had great D behind me so i didnt have to worry about getting them out myself
Melky: What went wrong after that?
Junior03: Hybrids ended up getting a lucky dink hit and really used that as a key with me making a mistake and giving him a juice pitch to crank for a homerun
Melky: If you could, would you have done anything differently?
Junior03: Switched and put jeter994 into pitcher for the whole top of the 6th. Instead of putting myself out there for the 6th.
Melky: Well I think you played a great tournament and good luck with your team
Junior03: Thanks
Final Score: Hybrids 6, Masters 5
Next Game: vs Bombers
Player of the Game: GAWD
Carnage vs Rejected
Carnage came into this game flying high. After defeating FlightAL, Megatron was confident he could contain an apparently less threatening Rejected team. To his disappointment, Megatron ran into some hard luck as Carnage was tested and tested often.
The Carnage pitcher surrendered 3 homeruns to Ensferum, who surprised me. Ensferum carried the load for the Rejected offense helping the total 14 runs by the 6th inning. Being able to focus on his hitting, Ensferum hit extremely well.
Megatron had his own answer. Also not having his normal stuff on the mound, he homered twice. Former flight slugger BnUtz homered twice as well.
The story was set in the bototm of the 6th as Majewicz pinch hit for Ebola. He subsequently slugged a 2 run walk off homer to end the game before it could head into extras. A great game for Carnage and for Rejected. I caught up with Mega, Carnage manager after the game:
Melky: How different was this game from your last? Flight is arguably a better hitting team and you pitched twice as good.
Mega: Can't expain it. Even the sun shines on a dog's ass sometimes
Mega: give them credit, they capitalized on our mistakes
Melky: So are you saying you had your normal stuff but it was just hit, or are you saying you just ran into some hard luck?
Mega: I think so. I don't think I had the focus I should have had, we had some behind the scenes issues going on
Melky: Care to elaborate?
Mega: Not really...it's something that should stay in the lockerroom
Melky: Very well then, how proud of you of your offense tonight? And is Rejected underrated in your opinion?
Mega: Our offense did a great job, but that's what we expect from them. They're great hitters who adjust well and they did their jobs tonite
Mega: I would say yes they are underrated. They have some definite weapons on offense but are still learning to play as a team
Melky: On a lighter note, how big did Majewicz come up tonight!?
Mega: Huge. Everyone knows he's just a kid and to come in in that situation replacing a hitter like Ebola and do what he did is just awesome.
Melky: Thank you for ur time
Mega: No problems, thanks for all your doing aswell
T.Tech vs Starfire
There is a reason Newbert and I are human. Starfire actually fielded a team. We were BOTH incorrect. Starfire played, scored 6 runs, and still lost by 21 runs. T.Tech completely annihilated Starfire in impressive...well not impressive really...fashion.
The magical 3 who showed for starfire? HrPower his cousin JCornett and VLadBomb. In a galant effort, Starfire played 6 innings. Quite an accomplishment for a team people were flaming for giving a free bye to teams in the past. On to the game...
WCKDPRK took the hill again for T.Tech pitching 6 innings for 6 run ball. An impressive feat considering he faced the same hitters over and over and over again. For Starfire, HRPOWER homered twice and VLADBOMB did so as well.
On to T.Tech. Even though it was a 5 v 3 game, T.Tech still scored 27 runs. This is the most runs ever scored in Elite league play. KUDOS. Who did what???
Gatyopin, Baptiste, W00ds15, SayHey, AbSmoke, and BearGrylle all homered. Baptiste homered 3 times, ABsmoke once, BearGrylle twice, and then the rest tacked on solo homeruns. T.Tech looks to continue at least half of that success in the next round against Carnage.
Melky: How were you able to maintain focus not even expecting your opponent to show up? Or did you expect them to show up?
BapTisTe: I had to keep my guys ready. I knew they would show as soon as two people came in the room. I knew they would show.
Melky: How impressed were you by your offense?
Baptiste: My guys looked good going into the second, but I was a little worried when we left the bases loaded in the third.
Melky: You scored 27 runs, how fun was the game?
Baptiste: It was Great. It was great to let the Bats go.
Melky: Do you have anything to say to Starfire?
BapTiste: *laughing* um Thanks for showing it was a Great upset for the community
BearGrylls in the background: StarFire has a lot of class for showing up
Melky: You face Carnage in the next round, how do you feel going into the game?
Baptiste: We just have to keep our hitters in the zone, and most importantly, we have to show up
Melky: Thank You for your time Baptiste and good luck.
Now let us see how i did compared to Newbert
Melky: Bombers vs RWNL- Correct
Newbert: Bombers vs RWNL - Correct
Melky: Hybrids vs Masters - Correct - Bonus for Player of the Game
Newbert: Hybrids vs Masters - Correct - Bonus for Player of the Game
Melky: Carnage vs Rejected - Correct
Newbert: Carnage vs Rejected - Incorrect
Melky: T.Tech vs Starfire - Incorrect
Newbert: T.Tech vs Starfire - Incorrect
Melky: 3-1
Newbert: 2-2
Thanks to Junior, Baptiste, and KMAN for the interviews.
Round 2: Previews
Melky again...So yea, I went 2-2 last night but I'm looking to go undefeated as I do the previews for tonight's game. Barring a complete server crash, the games are set to start at 9PM EST time.
RotowireNL vs Bombers
With both parent teams watching from the outside, Bombers and RotowireNL square off in what should be an entertaining game with experienced and cute players. Probably the most underrated manager in UBO, DayRod has taken the little engine that could RWNL team and turned them into a perennial powerhouse. Never in the discussion of Elite Teams, RWNL looks to make a splash and take home some sunglasses and Rotowire subscriptions they all probably have already. With the imminent birth of his child, ThirstyT relinquished his managerial duties and they fell right onto the lap of KMAN. How far can the new manager take the Bombers in his first tournament?
Bombers effectively contained a FlightNL offense that can best be described as dormant. Either that, or Goblin is just pretty good. His IPWN character pitched 6 complete innings of 3 run ball and struck out 4. Edua looks to continue his hot hitting and build off of a 2-4 night. Jiraiya was unable to show last night and it looks as if Bombers will have him for tonight's game. In a conversation with Bombers interim manager KMAN, I was able to get some inside information on 2 time Elite league MVP runner-up Frogger.
Melky: So How is Frogger, is he expected to play tonight
KMAN: As a result of chronic..er..hand pain, Frogger will undergo knee and shoulder surgery and will not make tonight's game.
There you have it, Bombers will go into today without Frogger. D1nonly2, TheMan, Jiraiya, and Edua are expected to start. It is unknown yet whether or not IPWN will be given the nod against RWNL.
RWNL was granted the number 1 seed basically because they have 10 players who have/had no life at one point or presently do blah blah blah. Because of the low curve bug, Klemens will not be blessing us with his low curve spam this tournament but should hurt the Bombers enough with his stick. Newly acquired and former StarFire star Ozzy might see some time tonight. This just in...O no..Newbert has cloned himself. Yes ladies and gentleman, NubXpress and Klemens are both on RWNL's roster, making it possible for more low curve spam....
HaZed is probably one of the top 10 all time hitters in UBO and will be a factor in the game. Coug should see the most time on the mound, as one of the most underrated pitchers of all time. Hell i've used that cliche enough, why not throw in the most underrated funny-name of all time...BigSwoll.
Yes, I have nothing to write on RWNL because they have not played a game, but I can say that this will be quite the contest. RWNL is a solid Team.
Melky's Prediction: Bombers 6 RWNL 5
Newbert's Prediction: Bombers 12, RW NL 6
Melky's Players to Watch: TheMan , HaZed
Newbert's Players to Watch: Jiraiya, klemens
Hybrids vs Masters
In all honesty I was dead wrong about both of these teams in the first round and I will be the first to admit I was wrong. Hybrids capitalized off of Brianr's inactivity and unless SniperX lags out again, should be in the game. Then again, Pesto did not pitch as bad as SniperX has done lately against elite competition, another interesting dilemma for manager ToyBoy.
The Hybrids rely heavily on ToyBoy and Gawd and some solid defense in LF. This is easily the most intriguing game of the night. SniperX will feed Masters hitters a heavy diet of slow low fastballs that should keep the inexperienced Masters hitters off balanced, until they get a brian and sit back.
Junior03 was a man possessed last game, apparently mad at someone who writes for this blog. Sorrry Rotowire :(. If Junior improves on his performance, Masters win easily, but I attribute his success to Boget's inexperience pitching in this patch. JLPR did not lag out and the Masters could not pitch. I was 1/2 on that.
Melky's Prediction: Hybrids 12 Masters 5
Newbert's Prediction: Hybrids 16, Masters 8
Melky's Player to Watch: Gawd , Jeter994
Newbert's Player to Watch: GAWD, Junior03
Carnage vs Rejected
Carnage is coming off a hell of a game with FlightAL. Yes the game was lag affected. Yes the game crashed multiple times. Yes the game did not finish. But for one reason or another, Flight did not finish a 3-run game that they should have finished.
Anyway Megatron impressed in his 2008 debut holding FlightAL under 10 runs. His offense played pretty well behind him. Carnage, to there appraisal, has become a very good team and are motivated by accusations of a "light league schedule" in 2007-4.
What does Carnage need to do to win? To be honest...show up. Rejected is a growing up and coming team but I do not see them upsetting a tested Carnage team. Ebola should hit, Megatron should pitch, and maybe Majewicz can get off the bench and strikeout.
What does Rejected need to do to win? I have this down to a science. 1) Killface needs to hit multiple homeruns 2) Ensferum must not flood team chat with nonsense that will distract his teammates 3) Ensferum must not give up more than 5 runs 4) Hunt Down and DESTROY Jacke
Melky's Prediction: Carnage 19 Rejected 4
Newbert's Prediction: Carnage 10, ReJected 12
Melky's Player to Watch: Jacke , K1LLFACE
Newbert's Player to Watch: HeadAke, RUGJUICE
T.Tech vs Bye GAME OF THE CENTURY
Listen T.Tech, I love you guys and Baptiste and Manny and WCKDPERK are awesome. The fact is, you will not play today. It is not because I'm lazy and I don't want to recap last night it is simply because it is a waste of space. You will not play. Just show up 3 people, and ttf. Starfire needs to burn slowly.
Melky's Prediction: Forfeit
Newbert's Prediction: StarFire manages to get 2 players to show, but Forfeit
Cinco De Mayo: Round 1 Top Performers
Hola, NEWBert checkin' in for the 1st time in this blog...I'll be giving out Top Performers awards for each round of the Cinco de Mayo Tournament (and whatever other tournaments are worth noting). Hopefully Cinco de Mayo didn't get the best of y'all.
Round 1 of the Cinco de Mayo Tournament saw some solid games, but only 2 players (one hitter, one pitcher) can receive my prestigious "Top Performer" award.
Top Performer: Hitting
- Junior03, Masters
Junior03 may have given up 10 runs in the first 2 innings of play, but his offensive production made up for it. In the 9 inning war of attrition against RotoWire he managed 8 hits in 12 at bats. Don't think Junior03 just big-blued his way to 1st base, either. Junior carried his weight (and then some) blasting 3 homers and knocking 3 doubles off RotoWire ace, Boget. In total he amounted for 7 RBIs, and scored 5 runs. The Masters certainly needed to hit well off Boget to pickup the upset victory and Junior made that happen.
Props to Junior03 for notching his 1st career Top Performer Award.
Top Performer: Pitching
- WCKDPERK, T.Tech
WCKDPERK helped T.Tech cruise into the 2nd round with 4 innings pitched against Ripit. He registered 6 K's and really dominated the Ripit squad, holding them to a .294 batting average. WCKDPERK may have faced what appears to be a weaker offense in the Elite League, but he did a damn good job. Pitching is never easy in REAL baseball and that's why my 2nd Top Performer Award goes to WCKDPERK of T.Tech.
Props to WCKDPERK for earning his 1st career Top Performer Award.
Round 1: Cinco De Mayo Recap
Final Score: T.Tech 15 , Ripit 4
Cinco De Mayo Preview
Next Game: Winner of 9. Bombers. and 8. Flight NL
2. Rejected - Bye
Next Game: Winner of 7. FlightAL and 10. Carnage
3. Starfire - Bye
Next Game: Winner of 6. Ripit and 11. T.Tech
4. Hybrids vs 13. Empire
In his inception into Elite tournament play, former AS league All-Aces SniperX was knocked around to the tune of a 19.20 ERA. Empire hitters had a field day against the same pitcher who seemed to dominate the likes of Mustangs, Ripit, and Rejected just a few seasons ago.
Hybrids found late success against Empire pitcher ElDuque the last time out and are expected to hit the ball well. ToyBoy seemed to be the only consistent hitter, while Gawd's struggles in the last tournament do not expect to continue.
On the Empire front, they look to develop a modern day murderers row with Revoke, Pete998, Melky, and Prooot. Those very same 4 hitters all had multiple hits off of SniperX in the last tournament.
Pitching wise, it is yet unknown who Empire will counter with seeing as Hybrid hitters have all ready seen ElDuque. Being a prize tournament, expect Empire to try everything possible to keep a very capable Hybrids team on edge.
Prediction: Empire 6 - Hybrids 3
Players To Watch: Pete998 , ToyBoy
5. Rotowire vs 12. Masters
Rotowire has always been one of the premier teams as far as tournament and regular season play came to mind. Regardless of their lack of playoff success, Rotowire is easily one of the top 5 teams in the game. The only true concern for Rotowire at this point is whether or not their ace pitcher, Boget, and Midget have been active enough to perform at the level they are capable of performing at.
Boget's usual slow cutter has been significantly nerfed this patch, and we will see if the multiple All-Aces winner can adjust to the tune of a sub 4.00 ERA that he has put up in league play.
Offensively it all depends on who shows up. If Splif, TarHeelS, Miig, and Haskell and Snipe show up, Rotowire is in for an offensive field day even if they are heavily inactive. But if CTAP is forced to throw out Skoal and himself into the mix, it is going to be a lot more difficult to win despite the leadership both players provide. It should be interesting how difficult Rotowire makes their tournament run. Their only competition in this first round, seems to be themselves.
The Masters have been under scrutiny for controversial maj down games and controversial recruiting. JLPR, Aceme, and Ravelo are all known laggers, and Junior will have to manage around lagging complaints from CTAP the whole way through.
Pitching duties should fall to Ravelo, who if he doesn't lag out, will have to maneuver past a tough Rotowire offense. If he falters, Tau will be there to pick him up.
Offensively Masters is unproven. JLPR has never finished a game so we can not judge how good of a hitter he is. Ravelo once was a very good hitter, but we are unsure if his pitching stats will damper his ability to hit. Junior has been nothing short of mediocre. And the rest of the Masters team seems to be inconsistent at best. Nevertheless, Rotowire should not overlook any team with AceMe O.O.
Prediction: Rotowire 11 - Masters 2
Players to Watch: Boget , Ravelo
6. Ripit vs 11. T.Tech
Youtube videos aside, Ripit is a team to be taken rather seriously. In this game though, they may be overmatched in every facet of play.
Ripit will continue to struggle as long as Resinator pitches sidearm. He seems to throw the same pitches in PUG as he does in the Tournament Clubhouse. In order to win, JimmyJohn needs to find a way to manipulate the sidearm style so that the ball can be thrown in a way that keeps these T.Tech hitters off balance. This may very well be buying a plane ticket, finding NCK, fixing sidearm pitches, and releasing a patch before tourney time.
Offensively, Ripit is a very streaky team that should not score more than 3 or 4 runs in this ball game. Unfortunately, Ripit's long wait for a tournament will be made longer after tonight.
T.Tech is simply a better team, flirting with the upper-echelon teams in UBO. WCKDPERK or GATYOPIN2 should see the mound, and though statistically unimpressive, they manage to hold opponents rather impressively.
Offensively, Baptiste's team will rely on birthday boy ABSMOKE, who will hopefully not be suffering from er um post-birthday depression. Anyway, this offense should provide enough runs to win this game rather easily.
Prediction: T.Tech 14 - Ripit 4
Players to Watch: ABSMOKE , Resinator
7. FlightAL vs 10. Carnage
One of the most popular story lines in RBO this coming year will be how effective FlightAL's pitching staff will be. Not falling far behind, is Carnage's own storyline of being slapped in the easiest division and taking advantage of it and reaching the league finals. Can FlightAL win with their pitching? Was Carnage's run a fluke?
FlightAL will feature ConMan and DrDeath. A telling sign of the fall of DrDeath is his demotion from FlightNL. Though both Flight teams are apparently "equal" it is evident that Papi has lost some confidence in his former Ace. DrDeath will most likely be handed pitching duties, if not, recently re-acquired ConMan will have to take the load. The Questionable pitching staff should be FlightAL's only question mark in this tournment.
With a collection of new faces, FlightAL's offense should suffer growing pains. New Manager Kentucky will have to find the correct formula for success. ZachAtack and Kentucky should hit, the question lies on who can fill in the other 2 slots. 96 has not proven himself capable, and Crede should hit fairly well. As I said, they should not have any other problem other than pitching, as FlightAL has a very capable offense.
Carnage needs to get Megatron off to a hot start. Megatron needs to avoid making the same mistake that always seems to cause Carnage games, keeping himself in too long. Other than that Megatron is very capable of getting hitters out, and he should maneuver past the inexperienced newer Flight players. The rest, will be a battle.
Ebola, Jacke, Wiggy, and Bnutz should get the start. All very good and capable hitters and as a team arguably have deeper offense than Flight. From an outsider's point of view, Kentucky and ZachAtack are better hitters, but Jacke, Wiggy, and Bnuts are significantly more consistent than the other two Flight can throw out there. Despite that, Carnage should put up similar runs to what Flight will.
Prediction: Carnage 7 - Flight 5
Players to Watch: BNutz - 96
8. FlightNL vs 9. Bombers *Game of the Day*
It can now be argued that FlightAL is a better team than FlightNL, this would have been an afterthought in years past. Now, with new acquisitions, Papi needs to quickly figure out what works and he will not have a good game to do so against a battle-tested Bombers team.
Pitching wise FlightNL needs to figure out who the hell can give them 4-6 innings. Is it 2Nice4Dis, who was hammered in tournament play in the past, or SmokeOut, who has not been trusted with Duque and DrDeath on the roster in games past. As it usually comes down to, pitching will be what FlightNL's question mark is.
Corv, Papi, YardDog, and HugeEvil will hit. They have an incredible offense that rivals any other in UBO. The fourth spot, should alternate throughout the year and it seems that Papi has tried to hide the evident pitching flaws with an overpowering offense. That did not work for Omen, Yankees, and Stigma in leagues past.
The least of concerns for the Bombers is pitching. KMAN took a loss to Flight in a warmup tournament but should rebound. IPWN looks to establish himself as the secondary pitcher needed to make a solid run at a tournament championship.
Frogger, Jiraiya, TheMan, d1nonly2. Runs will be scored off of Flight pitching.
Prediction: Bombers 9 - FlightNL 6
Players to Watch: d1nonly2 , 2Nice4Dis