Castle Delivers State of League Prior to PEC

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Borealis
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Castle Delivers State of League Prior to PEC

#1 Post by Borealis »

Castle Delivers State of League Prior to PEC
by Francis Ferry, NLN baseball beat writer

October 30, 2028: Asheville, North Carolina – The Ballroom at the Asheville Hotel was packed to the gills. Unlike Draft Day 2028, when Hurricane John knocked the power out and left the collection of GM’s staring at blank computer screens as the League scrambled to find a work-around, this cool, late autumn day was bright – the low sun shining through the window, casting false heat. On this day, there would be no confusion. On this day, the PEBA was here to celebrate – and the press was here to celebrate with them.

PEBA Commissioner, Edward ‘Harry’ Castle took the stage after being introduced by New Orleans GM Reg LeBlanc. Eschewing the podium, Castle grabbed the microphone and walked forward to the edge of the temporary stage. “Welcome,” he began, arms spread in an inclusive manner “Welcome all, to our little ‘State of the League Address’. I found it fitting that we meet with you all here today, for the irony of it was too hard to pass up. A little less than a year ago, we found our League on the brink, much like that crazy morning back in early June – when we were sitting here in the dark. Today, we find ourselves in the sun,” and as he gestured to the window – it’s bright rays illuminating the room, “figuratively and literally.”

“Today,” Harry continued “we find the PEBA sitting in a stronger place than we may have been in quite some time.” Nods and mumbled agreement moved through the room. “Through scandalous ownerships, a merger with our Japanese partners and a contentious contraction that nearly brought this fine institution to it’s knees – through it all, the Planetary Extreme Baseball Alliance has survived!”

Cheers greeted Castles’ assessment. He paused and let the crowd calm, and then he continued. “I would like to congratulate the Fargo Dinosaurs and the West Virginia Alleghanies for their successful playoff runs, and reaching the PEC. Although from years of studying the Aurora financial ledgers, I know that my families club really needed the income from a lengthy playoff run,” snickers floated through the crowd, “I believe that having two first-time participants competing for the Rodriguez Cup illustrates just how healthy our League is! Cristian Shofar has been with the PEBA since it’s inception, and to see his perseverance – Fargo has only won three division titles before this year, and had just four playoff appearances – and nothing for 10-years… it’s a testament to his character and the Fargo organization.” Cheers all around.

“Greg Abcarian has been with West Virginia since 2022, a year after leaving Dayton - the squad to become the Scottish club he just dispatched, and in that time, he has built a dynasty with a team whose history is not unlike Fargo’s. Under Greg’s tutelage, the Alleghanies have won their first three division titles over the past four years and with their 5th consecutive playoff appearance, the organization is a force to reckon with in the coming years. Well done.” More cheers, recognizing both teams successful campaigns.

As the crowd applauded the two League champions, banners of the two were raised behind Castle, which elicited more applause.

“But, any great organization never rests on it’s laurels – my father, my grand-father, my cousin Mike, rest his soul, they all would say that in Board meetings at Golden, and they would say it at the Christmas table, and I am here today to tell you the PEBA can not rest on it’s laurels – we must keep moving forward, keep fighting the good fight – so to speak, and with that, the PEC may be awaiting the first pitch, but in the Commissioners Office, the Board and I are already looking ahead to the offseason and the challenge of keeping us moving forward and relevant in the eyes of the global sports fan!”

Great cheers resonated throughout the Ballroom, and Harry Castle greeted them with a modest smile – as he took a few steps back, in an effort to let the League, itself, the owners, the GMs, the players receive the applause and honor that they deserve.

Once the crowd settled, Castle continued. “So with the offseason, we will roll out a series of items. Firstly, we will have a freshly updated Constitution of the Planetary Extreme Baseball Alliance, a document that we hope reflects where we are today with our League and at the same time honors the key tenants that our League was founded upon – Sportsmanship and Integrity.” Harry Castle paused for a moment, as if searching for the right words “Part of this updated document will be an update of the principles that teams will use to guide negotiations with players regarding compensation for their work. We’ve spent time working with the Players Union and we are hopeful that all parties will be pleased with the results.” A polite applause from the assembled press corp followed, as most had already been presented with much of this information during the negotiations.

“The League’s financial arm will begin promptly at the end of the PEC to analyze the financial standing of the League – Revenue Sharing checks will be in the mail soon. But that won’t be all.” Castle looked out at the crowd, the former-Chief Financial Officer of Golden Entertainment seemingly putting his CFO cap back on “The Financial Office has already begun studying League Data – how have teams performed over the course of the past 5- to 10-years – how have they done this year, and that information is being cross-referenced with what they have spent, what are their markets like – what does SociPolling figures tell us (Social Polling, a recent Social Media phenomenon that has made huge strides in recent years, informing and sculpting big business practices through more intimate information about their clientele.”

The response to this was mixed – while many found great value in SociPolling Informatics, still many others felt it too intrusive and subject to manipulation. Castle continued “We will be using this information to enhance the Leagues financial evaluation process, which we hope will, in the long run, make the League as competitive as ever.” Again, the response was mixed.

“Another area that we will be examining is the inconsistencies that we find within the PEBA minor league structures – every League – be it the Global Brotherhood or the Surf and Snow, has it’s quirks and there may have been a time when those quirks were… cute, but the changes of our recent past have put undue pressure on those minor league structures – we intend to rectify those… idiosyncrasies.” This was greeted with a polite applause and knowing shakes of many a head.

“Lastly, interest in the PEBA has grown over the last year, to the point that we feel that honoring our past by bringing it forward, to the present, can only make us stronger. We look back at an earlier time, and we see opportunity for today. Our history is littered with stories of teams that have left us – Tempe, Manchester, Charleston, New Jersey, Gloucester – all, save Manchester, all former-PEBA Champions, and yet all seemingly stricken from memory. The PEBA will be entering its 23rd season in 2029, and today, we will begin remembering where we came from. Today we begin going ‘back to the future’. “

And as Commissioner Edward ‘Harry’ Castle outlined the rest of the unexpected offseason plans, the shocked crowd could only listen… and smile.
Michael Topham, President Golden Entertainment & President-CEO of the Aurora Borealis
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Re: Castle Delivers State of League Prior to PEC

#2 Post by Fishermen »

I think that deserves a standing ovation

:clap: :clap: :clap: :clap: :clap: :clap: :clap: :clap: :clap: :clap:
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Re: Castle Delivers State of League Prior to PEC

#3 Post by Leones »

"Today we begin going ‘back to the future’. “

So many interesting tidbits. Where's that popcorn? ....
Patrick Hildreth
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Re: Castle Delivers State of League Prior to PEC

#4 Post by Lions »

Borealis wrote:Today we begin going ‘back to the future’. “
... or are we moving forward to the past? I NEED TO KNOW!
Frank Esselink
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Re: Castle Delivers State of League Prior to PEC

#5 Post by Borealis »

Claymores, via Slack wrote:Well, that’s intriguing. Throwback uniforms ...
Well... for the record, I was considering a 25th anniversary 'Alternate Jersey' season for 2031... just for fun!!
Michael Topham, President Golden Entertainment & President-CEO of the Aurora Borealis
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Re: Castle Delivers State of League Prior to PEC

#6 Post by Vic »

If that's possible, that would actually be pretty awesome!
Vic Caleca
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