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Eugene Church · 07-05-2008, 03:21 PM

The Islandian Times

Friday, June 22, 2001

Around the IPA

The Colfax Blasters (33-30) were in first place a month ago, but have since lost some sizzle and are tied for third with Valmara, 3.5 games off the pace. Clem Rogers, the famed flamethrowing righthander of the amateur leagues, is the skipper. Colfax has a great May with a 19-12 record, but have slipped to 10-12 in June.

Overall the Blasters have good run production (3rd), but are hitting only .262 and ranked last. The only standout sticks are second baseman and lead-off man Tucker Hill and first baseman Dennis Cole. Hill is batting .345 with 18 doubles, 7 triples and 43 runs scored and Cole has a .305 average with power. He has 17 home runs (4th), 55 RBIs (6th) and scored 52 times (1st-tied). Center fielder Blinky Branton has scored 44 runs and compiled a .283 battting average and right fielder Pat Lott has 19 doubles, 31 RBIs with a .268 average.

Rogers needs to get Cole some help in the power department and needs stronger hitting throughout the line-up to stay in the running for the RU North title. Right fielder Ronnie Wright, one of his better hitters, went out for the season with a fractured ankle. He was hitting .318 with 10 RBIs and 9 runs scored in 18 games. Wright was a better than average outfielder.

On the hill Colfax is rated third best with a 3.68 ERA, headed by Flash Guidry and Harry Manning. Righthander Guidry is 8-5 with 114 strikeouts (1st) in 124 innings with 2.54 ERA and lefthander Harry Manning is 8-4 with a 3.16 ERA. Rogers has two decent starters in Robbie Smith (3-4 3.04) and Alex Castille (7-5 4.34), both are portsiders. The Blasters bullpen has been inconsistent, good sometimes and poor sometimes. Closer Walt Sellers has made 22 appearances and has 7 saves. He has a fine 2.76 ERA, but his won-lost record is a very poor 1-4. That's all Rogers has. He really needs to get more help from the other four pitchers on the club.

Colfax is down near the bottom in defense with a .974 fielding average, ranked fifth in the division.

Basically the Blasters are only getting production from half of their roster. Look for Rogers to make quite a few roster moves in the coming weeks.

J. Jackson Samuel is the manager of the Valmara Vipers (33-30). The Vipers did poorly in May (13-19), but have turned it around in June (12-9). Valmara has done it with the best hitting in the division, a .277 average and have outscored everybody, too. They have good balance led by left fielder Louis Sharp with a .356 average (3rd) and 44 runs scored, second baseman Fred Vinson at .333 with 32 runs, first baseman Yank Jankowski (.322), right fielder Jan Kazmarek (.287) with 44 runs, 41 RBIs and 30 SB (1st), catcher Yoshi Motsuzuki (.277) with 41 runs and 12 SB, third baseman Rickey O'Reilly (.270) with 31 RBI and center fielder Jan Szymanski (.252) with 13 HR and 59 RBI (2nd). Backup infielder Steve Kaminski is batting .342 in 15 starts, but hasn't been able to get a regular place in the line-up. Samuel has said he will either use him or try to improve the team by trading him for some pitching. The Vipers suffered a big loss in shortstop Mickey Ellefsen, who was batting .312 with 8 home runs. He went out with a torn hamstring and will miss 12 months. Ellefsen's season ended after only 32 starts.

Valmara is as bad in pitching as they are good with the bats. The Vipers are fifth with a 4.22 ERA. Only Elnora is worse at 4.70. Samuel can call on two of the best pitchers in the league, starter Zarek Zalewski (8-4 1.93) with the IPA's best ERA and closer Danny Blauser (5-1 1.80) with 4 saves in 27 games But little else, except for starter Todd Turner (6-4 4.11). The rest of the staff have 5.00-6.00 ERAs. Two good pitchers, a starter and a reliever, could do wonders for Valmara.

However, the Vipers are tops in the Ruthlandian Union North with a .981 fielding percentage.

07-05-2008, 03:21 PM	#332 (permalink)
Eugene Church Hall Of Famer Join Date: Aug 2002 Posts: 17,079 Thanks: 100 Thanked 100x in 52 posts	The Islandian Times Friday, June 22, 2001 Around the IPA The Colfax Blasters (33-30) were in first place a month ago, but have since lost some sizzle and are tied for third with Valmara, 3.5 games off the pace. Clem Rogers, the famed flamethrowing righthander of the amateur leagues, is the skipper. Colfax has a great May with a 19-12 record, but have slipped to 10-12 in June. Overall the Blasters have good run production (3rd), but are hitting only .262 and ranked last. The only standout sticks are second baseman and lead-off man Tucker Hill and first baseman Dennis Cole. Hill is batting .345 with 18 doubles, 7 triples and 43 runs scored and Cole has a .305 average with power. He has 17 home runs (4th), 55 RBIs (6th) and scored 52 times (1st-tied). Center fielder Blinky Branton has scored 44 runs and compiled a .283 battting average and right fielder Pat Lott has 19 doubles, 31 RBIs with a .268 average. Rogers needs to get Cole some help in the power department and needs stronger hitting throughout the line-up to stay in the running for the RU North title. Right fielder Ronnie Wright, one of his better hitters, went out for the season with a fractured ankle. He was hitting .318 with 10 RBIs and 9 runs scored in 18 games. Wright was a better than average outfielder. On the hill Colfax is rated third best with a 3.68 ERA, headed by Flash Guidry and Harry Manning. Righthander Guidry is 8-5 with 114 strikeouts (1st) in 124 innings with 2.54 ERA and lefthander Harry Manning is 8-4 with a 3.16 ERA. Rogers has two decent starters in Robbie Smith (3-4 3.04) and Alex Castille (7-5 4.34), both are portsiders. The Blasters bullpen has been inconsistent, good sometimes and poor sometimes. Closer Walt Sellers has made 22 appearances and has 7 saves. He has a fine 2.76 ERA, but his won-lost record is a very poor 1-4. That's all Rogers has. He really needs to get more help from the other four pitchers on the club. Colfax is down near the bottom in defense with a .974 fielding average, ranked fifth in the division. Basically the Blasters are only getting production from half of their roster. Look for Rogers to make quite a few roster moves in the coming weeks. J. Jackson Samuel is the manager of the Valmara Vipers (33-30). The Vipers did poorly in May (13-19), but have turned it around in June (12-9). Valmara has done it with the best hitting in the division, a .277 average and have outscored everybody, too. They have good balance led by left fielder Louis Sharp with a .356 average (3rd) and 44 runs scored, second baseman Fred Vinson at .333 with 32 runs, first baseman Yank Jankowski (.322), right fielder Jan Kazmarek (.287) with 44 runs, 41 RBIs and 30 SB (1st), catcher Yoshi Motsuzuki (.277) with 41 runs and 12 SB, third baseman Rickey O'Reilly (.270) with 31 RBI and center fielder Jan Szymanski (.252) with 13 HR and 59 RBI (2nd). Backup infielder Steve Kaminski is batting .342 in 15 starts, but hasn't been able to get a regular place in the line-up. Samuel has said he will either use him or try to improve the team by trading him for some pitching. The Vipers suffered a big loss in shortstop Mickey Ellefsen, who was batting .312 with 8 home runs. He went out with a torn hamstring and will miss 12 months. Ellefsen's season ended after only 32 starts. Valmara is as bad in pitching as they are good with the bats. The Vipers are fifth with a 4.22 ERA. Only Elnora is worse at 4.70. Samuel can call on two of the best pitchers in the league, starter Zarek Zalewski (8-4 1.93) with the IPA's best ERA and closer Danny Blauser (5-1 1.80) with 4 saves in 27 games But little else, except for starter Todd Turner (6-4 4.11). The rest of the staff have 5.00-6.00 ERAs. Two good pitchers, a starter and a reliever, could do wonders for Valmara. However, the Vipers are tops in the Ruthlandian Union North with a .981 fielding percentage. Last edited by Eugene Church; 07-05-2008 at 03:32 PM.