CHAMPIONSHIP SERIES PREVIEW
vs. 
97-65 106-56
NEW YORK HEROES LEADERS
 | | Team Leaders AVG | | T. Kennedy | .301 | | J. Morgan | .280 | | R. Connor | .275 | | I. Meusel | .255 | | D. Wright | .242 | |
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|  | | Team Leaders HR | | R. Connor | 31 | | T. Kennedy | 15 | | J. Cassidy | 13 | | D. Wright | 13 | | W. Horton | 12 | |
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| | | Team Leaders RBI | | R. Connor | 104 | | T. Kennedy | 82 | | D. Wright | 61 | | I. Meusel | 60 | | J. Cassidy | 48 | |
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 | | Team Leaders W | | B. Byrd | 16 | | D. Darwin | 13 | | B. Drake | 12 | | F. Killen | 12 | | 2 tied with | 8 | |
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| | | Team Leaders ERA | | B. Byrd | 2.79 | | F. Killen | 3.41 | | B. Drake | 3.55 | | | | | |
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| | | Team Leaders K | | B. Byrd | 165 | | F. Killen | 123 | | B. Drake | 105 | | J. Coleman | 84 | | D. Darwin | 78 | |
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CHICAGO HITMEN LEADERS
 | | Team Leaders AVG | | F. Baker | .346 | | P. Dougherty | .311 | | B. Ruth | .272 | | P. Hill | .250 | | | |
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|  | | Team Leaders HR | | B. Ruth | 41 | | M. Bradley | 12 | | P. Putnam | 12 | | P. Hill | 11 | | 2 tied with | 7 | |
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| | | Team Leaders RBI | | B. Ruth | 122 | | F. Baker | 99 | | B. Mackey | 61 | | P. Dougherty | 59 | | M. Bradley | 58 | |
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 | | Team Leaders W | | B. Sanders | 22 | | J. Santana | 19 | | H. Pollet | 17 | | J. Bush | 10 | | 2 tied with | 9 | |
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|  | | Team Leaders ERA | | H. Pollet | 2.71 | | J. Santana | 3.03 | | B. Sanders | 3.19 | | L. Barker | 3.45 | | | |
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|  | | Team Leaders K | | J. Santana | 161 | | B. Sanders | 160 | | H. Pollet | 137 | | L. Barker | 116 | | J. Bush | 90 | |
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SEASON SERIES: Chicago won 7 of 10
Can the Northern League's 8th ranked offense overcome the loss of leadoff man and sparkplug Joe Morgan against the league's Chicago juggernaut?
Beyond Roger Connor and Terry Kennedy, the Heroes offense is sputtering. David Wright seems to have settled in as a mediocre player rather than the star New York expected when drafting him, and that's a lot of a load to ask Connor to carry for a whole postseason. Irish Meusel and Fielder Jones each posted negative VORP for the season, and the pitching staff, while solid, wasn't dominant. Losing Jonathan Papelbon for the year in April had something to do with that.
Still, all of that leads to the conclusion the Heroes have benefited most from playing in the PBL's worst division.
Their story is well known. This is the PBL's sixth season. The Heroes have won the NL East each season. They've never won the PBL Championship.
Can they do it against a juggernaut that scored the most runs in the league and allowed the fewest, posting the second-best record in league history?
No. Cinderella stories are nice, but fairy tales are fun because of their unbelievability. When reality sets in, the Hitmen are baseball's best team. They can be beaten, but not by the Heroes.
Prediction: Chicago in 5.