PEBA Playoff Preview – The Sovereign League
Friday, October 2, 2009
Head to head: 8 – 7 (PS)
The Codgers and Sandgnats are meeting in the playoffs for the third time in three years, in what expects to be the most entertaining pairing of the Division Series. In 2007 Palm Springs made short work of Crystal Lake in the Alliance Tournament, taking the series 4 games to 1, but went on to lose the inaugural Planetary Extreme Championship series 4 games to 1 to the New Jersey Hitmen. In 2008, the pesky Sandgnats returned the favor and sent the Codgers back to the nursing home after a Division Series sweep. Crystal Lake would eventually lose to the New Orleans Trendsetters 4 games to 2 in the PEC. History aside, these teams will begin their arduous quest to bring the Rodriguez Cup to the Sovereign League for the first time.
Both teams have been red hot since July 1st, winning more than 70 percent of their games. The season series went in favor of Palm Springs 8-to-7, with Crystal Lake scoring 83 runs to Palm Springs’ 82. 10 games were decided by 4 runs or less.
On May 12th, the Codgers trailed 6-3 heading to the bottom of the ninth. Solo shots off of closer Ángel Chacón by Ollie "Phenom" Morris and Héctor Castillo helped force the game to the 10th. Phenom, the PEBA’s richest man, again came through with a walk-off 2-run homerun to give Palm Springs the win.
The very next night saw another Palm Springs extra-innings victory over Crystal Lake. After pinch-running for Manny López in the 8th, Bob Jefferson’s double knocked in Mark Frazier, who came all the way around from 1st base uncontested to tie the score 5-5 in the top of the 9th. Frazier produced a sac fly in the top of the 10th, but it was erased by a solo homerun by Alberto Casillas in the bottom of the inning. Frazier’s error in left field in the bottom of the 12th would ensure another extra innings victory for Palm Springs.
Perhaps the most exciting game played in the PEBA this year came on June 18th. A game that lasted 5+ hrs and 15 innings at Gnat Field gave the Sandgnats an extra innings victory of their own.
With a rich playoff history already forged and a very exciting season series come and gone, this will be a battle remembered for ages.
Keys to success for Palm Springs: Control the running game, flashy leather
The Sandgnats sport an incredible 678:783 BB:K ratio, and those 783 strikeouts outpaced every other PEBA team by 133. To put it simply, they have excellent discipline and put a lot of balls in play. They have four players with 20+ SB, led by Powell Clark’s 64. Quincy van Tiggelen, who has thrown out runners at just above a 25% clip, needs to pack his Depends, as he will certainly have his hands full. The Codgers defense, which sports a 4.07 RNG rating, will have to make sure they get their hands on as much as possible to aid their starters that so they can pitch deep into games. If they do a good job of minimizing base runners, I really like their chances in this series.
Player to watch: Héctor Castillo
A favorite for the SL All-Leather Award this year at SS, Castillo will be all over the infield, stealing balls from teammate Ollie Morris if he has to. His defense will play a huge role in the success of the Codgers’ starting pitching in this series. Oh, he also hit .391 in 46 at-bats against Crystal Lake this season.
Keys to success for Crystal Lake: Feed López, wreak havoc on base paths
The Sandgnats managed to score a remarkable 923 runs this season, good for second in the PEBA. This was due in large part to 1B slugger Manny López. His 51 homeruns and 131 RBI were tops in the PEBA. The Sandgnats have to put people on base in front of him in order to capitalize on the opportunities they have to put these games away early. Stealing bases, or just getting the speedsters on base, will certainly add some frustration to the Palm Springs staff. Whether it’s small ball or the long ball, Crystal Lake will need to reveal all of their cards for these games.
Player to watch: Manny López
Well, this was a no-brainer eh? Really though, López has excelled against Palm Springs this year. His numbers: .423/.538/1.058 in 52 at-bats, highlighted by 10 homeruns against these fogies. López is always on the watch list, but with those numbers he can carry the Sandgnats through this series all by himself.
Head to head: 11 – 4 (AUR)
Keys to success for Bakersfield: Unfortunately – everything
The Bears are graced with the misfortune of facing the record-setting club from Aurora in the first round. This could actually be a blessing in disguise. A shorter series might actually benefit the Bears here. They field a solid team led by 3-time All-Star Pat Lilly. Bakersfield was 4th in runs scored and 4th in runs allowed in the Sovereign League this year. Quality starts are a must from the starting pitchers, and they’ll have to score early to put the pressure on the champs of the Desert Hills Division. Take advantage of every count, base runner and the home crowd in games 3 and 4. They can’t make mistakes and they’ll need a little luck on their side, but this is a 95-win underdog here and you have to like their chances to send the Evil Empire back where they came from.
Player to watch: Luis Garza
Although he didn’t get any wins to show for it, Garza managed a 2.37 ERA over 3 starts against the Borealis. It’s unclear at this point if we’ll see Garza a second time in this series, but look for him to lead the Bears to victory when he does pitch.
Keys to success for Aurora: Play their game
This team does everything exceptionally well. They rank first by a hefty margin in nearly every statistical category known to man. They won 20+ games every month of the season, showing no chinks in their armor. They reached the 100-win plateau in late August and surpassed Crystal Lake’s all-time win record of 118 with 10 games to spare. Time will tell if the recent news and late-season injuries will hamper this team’s success, but if they play continue to play their game they are a sure fit as favorites to claim ownership of the 2009 Rodriguez Cup.
Player to Watch: Jon Mitchell
He’s not considered the best on the staff, but he’s one of the best #4 starters in the PEBA. Mitchell made 4 starts against Bakersfield and was clearly the most dominant Aurora starter against them this year. He managed a 1.98 ERA in 27 IP and received 3 wins for his duty. Depending on how the series plays out, Mitchell might play a vital role late in the series.