Manama musings 2.0

[jjw]

The Pearls have certainly turned things around since this time last season, when the club was barely playing .500 ball and the answer to the question of whether they had any chance of becoming an Association-leading club was apparently a 'no'. But with a solid second half and then an inspired playoff run that took them all the way to the championship series -- which they lost 4 games to 1, but not quite that lopsided as 4 of the 5 contests were decided by a single run -- the 2049 season was looking promising. And so far, that promise seems to be fulfilled, as Manama has the Association's best winning percentage and presently leads the Burt League by 4 games over Jerusalem.

The formula has been much the same as the one that carried the Pearls through the playoffs: very good pitching, good defense, and an ability to get on base and secure the timely hit to back their pitchers. If you review the team stats for the UMEBA, they provide all the evidence you need for this success.

The club has given up the fewest runs in the Association and has the best team ERA by a significant margin (3.77 to Jerusalem's 4.16 and Riyadh's 4.17). Two of the starters -- Edgar Sosa and Rick Clarijs -- have been particularly good, with 3.12 and 2.92 ERA's respectively, and with both making the Burt League All-Star team. And Damian Theophanous, who recently moved into the rotation after putting up good numbers out of the bullpen, has been another stellar performer, and was also an All-Star. The bullpen also has seen some very good pitching. Owen McKelvey has 19 saves as the closer and only a few bad showings have pushed his ERA to 4.50. Santiago Zúñiga (1.74) and Calvin Fletcher (2.38) have done nice work in both setup and middle relief, earning themselves a trip to the All-Star game.

When it comes to hitting, Manama plainly has very little power -- slugging the second fewest HRs in the UMEBA, even though they play in a hitter's park -- but they lead the Burt in on-base percentage (and walks, where they also rank 4th in the Association) and are second in that league in OPS. Some outstanding performances at the plate, earning All-Star selection, have been turned in by the club's shortstop, Socrates 'The Philosopher' Kazantziakis, CF Patrick Strolz, RF Taylor Barfoot, second baseman Mike England, and LF Joshua Koka. (Note that Koka is 29 and England is 33, but Kazantziakis, Strolz, and Barfoot are all 23 or 24.) In addition, Cris Martínez has done a good job in the DH slot, with Michael Pedarzolli hitting very well coming off the bench at DH and 1B.

Finally, on defense, Manama has the third best defense efficiency rating in the Association, and has the UYMEBA's 4th best range rating.

So to succeed in the UMEBA this season: pitch really well, get on base a lot, and play above average in the field. Simple enough, yes?