The Junior Monsters: A Backyard Sports Dynasty.

[Cuban'sCigars]

[Cuban'sCigars]

I've got the team MVP Race up here.

The Playoffs will start Friday, I'll be posting a playoff preview throughout the week.

[J-Jet]

Haha I love this. Use to play this game all the time, good times, good times.

[Cuban'sCigars]

Monsters versus Pirates may not be the most key of the four first-round BBL match-ups, but it will be exciting. It features two division winners in a straight-up hitting vs pitching duel. It's similar to the A's-Dodgers '88 world series in that both teams are almost entirely one-dimensional.


The scoop on the Monsters:
The monsters started off the season with a bang, a scoreless inning streak that lasted 5 games dominating weak BBL East Competition. They proceeded to fall off outside division play.

The pitching here has been near flawless. Closer Dante Robinson may have fallen off, but relief pitchers Ashley and Sidney Webber have been dominant in his place. Ronny Dobbs has taken over the starting spot, posting a 1.33 ERA on the season and a 3-1 record.

Hitting for the monsters has been rather pedestrian. But the team has several speedy baserunners, including Mannywood, who is third in the league in steals. Pete Wheeler and Dante 'Stretch' Robinson also are known for this attribute.

The Monsters really shine on defense. Stephanie Morgan has been terrific at shortstop. Mikey Thomas has a cannon of an arm that threatens both base-runner and bunter. Only 11 errors on the season for the Monsters.

Key Player:

Amir Khan

Khan had a great first half of the season. While his second half performance hasn't been bad, he's only notched 1 win outside inter league play losing the starting job to Ronny Dobbs. Khan is also the weak link in the Monsters defense. Will his reputation as a clutch hitter continue into the playoffs?

90's Rapper Comparison:

While the monsters do not play prototypical BBL ball, they continue to be solid throughout the year and produce great but not typical results. Similar to how Bone Thugs and Harmony remain active year after year, place emphasis on musical ability, but never seem to achieve the fame of other rappers.

[Cuban'sCigars]

The Scoop on the Pirates:

The Pirates have been one of the leagues best offensive teams this season. Averaging 7.7 runs/game, the Pirates have two league leaders in RBI. Wing Kwan is third leaguewide with 26, while Annie Fraizer is 5th leaguewide with 20.

The good news seems to end there. The pirates have an abomnidable defense, giving up 28 errors over the season. This is highlighted by Annie Fraizer's 12 errors. The speedy monsters will be quick to take advantage of this mismatch.

Pitching has been a major problem for the Pirates. The starting pitching duties have been performed by Alan Hulsman, who has a 6.38 ERA. The bullpen has been great, lead by Annie Frazier. Frazier has 2 wins and 6 strikeouts in only 5 innings pitched, and she has yet to allow a run!

Key Player:

Annie Fraizer. She's not known as a power hitter, can she keep producing against the Monster's stingy defense? Fraizer has to cut down on the errors against the speedy monsters. Can Fraizer continue her bullpen dominanace?

90's Rapper Comparison:

Eazy E was known for his Gangster Mentality, Persona, and use of profanity. He debuted with the Rap Group NWA, but later faded as he failed to adjust with changing trends and lacked solid lyrical skills. The pirates have all the offense in the world, but can they play well-rounded baseball?

SIMMONS VERDICT: Monsters in 3.

[Cuban'sCigars]

The fishes and padres have the league's best records. Similar to the Yankees-Red Sox, both are division rivals who split the season series. This battle should be a slugfest as both clubs contain some of the leagues top players.

The Scoop on the Fishes:

The fishes are a pretty ordinary team with one extraordinary player. Defensively, they are pedestrian (at best). Offensivley, they are about average, excluding Super-Slugger Chico Pappas.

Rose Fuegal holds up the staff in for the Fishes. She only has a record of 2-3, but Fuegal has an ERA of 4.21, which is above-average for the league. Her performance in this series will be vital to the Fishes.

But the main reason to worry is about Chico Pappas. Pappas can carry the team on his back, and he is hitting .588 and leads the league in both home runs and RBI's.

Key Player:

Chico Pappas. Pappas' is the heart and soul of this team and strikes fear into the heart of opponents. He will have to put up monster numbers to overcome the opposition.

90's Rap Comparison:

Dr. Dre was a rapper/producer who became legendary due to his lyrical skills, but never excelled got any top hits due to his inability to stand out or sell out. The Fishes have Chico Pappas, who is the leagues best player, but can they win it all when the rest of the team is merely above-average?

[Cuban'sCigars]

The Scoop on the Padres:

Hitting is the Padres specialty. They have three hitters with 10+ Home Runs, and two with 20+ RBIS. Samuel Middleton leads the Padres with a line of .617/11/26. Zena Fromme also has been impressive, batting .588 with 10 home runs and 23 RBIS.

Pitching has been a sore spot for the Padres. Betty Houston and Davy Marian are most present on the mound. Marian has a 5.28 ERA with a 6-1 record, while Houston has a 4.90 ERA with a 3-0 record. Neither of these are impressive.

Key Player:

Davy Marian. Marian finished 8th in the league in strikeouts while sharing time with Fromme. He has the talent to play well, and the Padres bats will pick up the slack. Can he keep Pappas in check?

90's Rap Comparison:

Snoop Dogg is the signature artist of 90's rap. At a time when Gang Wars and Label disputes led to the premature retirement of many rap artists, the DOGG crafted a perfectly made image and unique style and has continued to be a top artist for almost two decades. The Padres have more talent than any other team in the league. The only question is: Will they let it get to them?

Simmons Pick: Padres in 3.

[Cuban'sCigars]

Since the BBL-American is much weaker than the BBL-National, I'll just go over these teams real quick-like.

Rays versus Rangers.
Rays- Summary: The Rays may have the top record at 10-4, but run differential will tell you a different story about the ballclub. The +12 RD is simply won't do. The Rays bats have been fairly silent, with no hitter with 15+ RBIs. Sally Dobbs has pitched a majority of the time, but has a pedestrian 5.05 ERA.

Who to watch: Jose Canseco. Canseco has had a solid season thus far in the pitching department. As a reliever, he's got a solid 2.57 AVG and is 2-1. His hitting has been a major disappointment. The famed speedster and power hitter has only managed a batting line of .239/1/5. For the Rays to win, Canseco needs to step it up.


Rangers- Summary The Rangers hitting has been abysmal this season, as the team has scrapped together a .298 Avg, one of the playoff's worst. The team is lead by two dynamic stars who have had a terrific season from both sides of the plate. Catcher Ivan Rodriguez hit .444/2/6 this season while also sporting a 2.69 ERA and 38 SO in 36 IP. Francis Blewer hit .365/6/9 this season. She also had a 3.65 ERA with 25 SO in 23 IP.

Who to Watch: Ivan Rodriguez, C/P. He's known for his great fielding and has yet to allow an error. Rodrigues is also the team's best contact hitter, as well as the teams best pitcher. The team will go as far as Rodriguez can take them.

SIMMONS VERDICT: RANGERS IN 3