Ramblings and Rumblings, Volume 7 in 2042: UMEBA All-Star Game Review
Posted: Wed Apr 29, 2020 6:19 pm
UMEBA All-Star Game ReviewRamblings and Rumblings, Issue 7, 2042 Season
The UMEBA All-Star game was a roaring success from all accounts, with 25,000 people filling the seats at the Ballpark of Baghdad to see the Burt League emerge victorious over the Bancroft, 8-3. Kuwait City’s Drew Hair was up twice and hit home runs both times to lead the Burt, but many others had very good games as well.
The game was an 8-0 rout in the top of the seventh before the Bancroft got up to bat, and in the last three innings, the Bancroft added three runs to not get shut out. The Burt League starting pitchers refused to let any runs across. Baghdad’s Jose Zamora started the game which thrilled the home fans and pitched a perfect first inning. Istanbul’s Frances Wiles and Cairo’s Fraser Pond also turned in shutout innings. Wiles was determined the winning pitcher of the game for some reason even though he only pitched the second inning and it took him just six pitches to get through it. Surprisingly, Baghdad’s Mei-shan Ngui, who was tied with teammate Zamora for the most votes for starting pitcher, did not enter the game even in front of his home fans.
Relievers Charlie Simmons and Bras Gesterias, both of Istanbul hurled individual shutout innings along with Baghdad’s Jose Perez, my pick for the best reliever in the UMEBA right now. Unfortunately, the relief pitcher with the most all-star votes, Manama’s Netuno Markert had a rough go of it, giving up all three runs in 2.2 innings. I’m not sure why he pitched so much, but he does have a great UMEBA name, and is a fan favorite, so maybe that had something to do with it.
Investigations are ongoing as to why Bucharest’s Matt Hansen was allowed to start the game when he had the fourth most votes of the Bancroft starting pitchers. Well, he started and gave up three hits and two runs in the first inning including a two run homer to Drew Hair. Hair added a second homer in the third inning and he was the only player to hit a homer in the Burt lineup.
Besides first baseman Hair, 34 year old UMEBA rookie Bucky Dornster of Istanbul had two hits as did Baghdad outfielder Griff Tannen who got no votes to even be in the All-Star game! Somehow, Tannen started the game which made the Baghdad fans happy, and had two hits in four at bats.
Even though Bancroft got blown out, two players hit homers for the team. Bucharest designated hitter Fernando Renteria, who was almost unanimously voted in as the starting DH, smacked one in the seventh while his teammate Saikaku Aoki launched one in the eighth.
Renteria was the only player in the Bancroft lineup to notch two hits. He came in the game and got hits in both of his at bats as he came in the game as a pinch hitter.
Four of the eight Bancroft pitchers gave up runs. It is unfortunate that leading vote getter at starting pitcher, Bucharest’s Mateus Rabisca was not able to pitch in front of his home fans due to injury, but it likely would not have made a big difference in the game on the whole.
so by your take Athens are the better team? We have a winning record against the BURT but a losing record in the BANCROFT, maybe seeing all those brooms the last time you played the Centaurs drove you crazy, did you know our manager was heard to be shouting "All right now, I don't want them to gain another hit! You STRIKE ALL NIGHT!!! If they cross home plate, I'll take every last one of you out! You make sure they remember FOREVER the night they played the Centaurs!!!" Talk of making it into a movie Remember the Centaurs.