The Yellow Springs Nine issued the following press release:
Cat Island – The Yellow Springs Nine congratulate the 2057 Cat Island Pirates for returning to the post-season after missing out in 2056.
"While it would have been great if their plunder included a Championship, I am so pleased that the Pirates, against stiff competition, battled back to the playoffs again this season," said GM Rob McMonigal. "It's not easy to win in Short-A, where the BBA minors seem extremely competitive. The team took 50 victories home and didn't even get a shot at the wild card last year. This time they made it past the post, but couldn't get as far as we'd hoped in the post-season."
The Pirates, who were 49-27 after a 50-26 2056, beat division rival Kingston Legends 2-1 in the Faceoff round, but lost 2-1 to the San Angelo Missions in the Showdown. "Beating the Legends, who took the division, felt really good," said manager Huibert Staps. "We hate those guys."
Added McMonigal, "And losing to the eventual Champions in the Missions, while not what you want to have happen, means you came up short against the very best. And now there'll be even more to play for in 2058.
Top players for the Pirates included:
SP Qays bin Shafiq, 21. A scouting discovery, bin Shafiq went 8-5 with 109.1 IP, 95 strikeouts and an ERA of 2.06. He only walked 26 batters all year, good for a WAR of 3.5
SP Pat Rhodes, 22. Rhodes scholared the rest of Short A, with a 7-3 record in 16 starts and 90.2 innings pitched. He had 70Ks against just 12 walks, giving up only 3 home runs all season. His WAR for the year was 2.5
OF Negussu Adisa, 21. The young outfielder batted .321 with 29 doubles, 66 runs scored, and and OPS of .931. His WAR was 2.7.
OF Ramon Acuna, 22. Signed as a minor league free agent in 2056, Acuna batted .364 in 64 games with 11 HR (most on the team), 52 RBIs (most), and a team-leading OPS of 1.040, good for a WAR of 2.6.
3B Raul Hernandez, 21. Hernandez just missed batting .400 for the season, finishing at .396 with an OPS of .927. He finished with a WAR of 2.1
