Westside Warriors Attribute Ratings

Championships - silver star: tournament champion, gold star: WSEM champion, gold triangle: division pennant
League averages - CON: 77, PWR: 77, PIT: 75, DEF: 79, OVR: 77 Team attribute ratings were determined by averaging the individual ratings of the four members of the WSEM Front Office's Tactical Media Wing. Contact (CON), power (PWR), pitching (PIT), and defense (DEF) were studied to determine overall (OVR) team rating. The thin bars included are the league average for each attribute. This writeup for the Warriors is provided by Carl Coffee.

No team made a bigger splash in the offseason than the Westside Warriors. Alex Shore made it known that it’s championship or bust for the orange and black. Two 5-star All-Stars, David Castle and Evan Bortmas signed with the Warriors and are both dual threat players who can pitch and hit well. Sam Hatt who played at the end of the 2013 season for the Warriors, re-signed and will be the team’s ace.

The ratings were very kind for the Warriors as they finished tied for 1st with an overall rating of 90. We obviously rated them based on their full roster, but with caution about the availability of Hatt and Bortmas. They led the league in the Contact category at 95. Every single player on this team can hit for average, but their Power category is a little lower at 90. I am shocked to see their Pitching rating is 2nd in the league at 91, even higher than El Diablos. Hatt is a stud, but Bortmas didn’t get a lot of time on the mound in 2013. Castle has the ability to pitch well, but has been inconsistent. Their defense is some of the best in the league, and 86 is a perfect rating for that category. The Warriors are a dynamic group of Wifflers, and it’s obvious their talent will take them far – if their talent can show up, of course.

Fore!

		Your Junk my Happy Zone
		by Brandon Corbett

Coming your way this week is the start of the head-to-head race for the fourth and final playoff spot. At 15-9 with a magic number of three and four games to play against the seventh and eighth place teams, Holy Balls all but have the first wild card slot in their pocket - barring a complete and embarrassing choke job, of course. On the other hand, the second wild card slot is wide open. The Westside Warriors have a magic number of six and are three games ahead of the Ducks, which sounds like a nice cushion. However, four of both teams eight remaining games will be played against one another. Two weeks, two teams, two series, just one spot to fill.

On Sunday, the home stretch starts off with a sprint! Westside and the Ducks meet at 3 pm at the Swamp in Trenton as the start of a two series day for both teams. With increasing amount of interest, here are the situations the results could put us in: a Westside sweep pushes their magic number down to two; a split drops the magic number to four, while keeping the Ducks three games back; a Ducks sweep brings them to one game behind and, more importantly, keeps the elimination number at six with six games to play.

Those six games obviously include the back half of the head-to-head series. For the Ducks the other four games will all be played against King Friday. The Warriors have King Friday for two themselves, as well as two with the Wicked Aces down in Whiteford. That makes the non-H2H portion of the schedule tougher on Westside, but they do come in with a little breathing room. Below is a graphic that both sums up the position in which each team sits and gives us the chance for some nice fore and four(th playoff spot) wordplay:

Bold Ass Predictions

		Your Junk my Happy Zone
		by Brandon Corbett

For those unfamiliar, a bold ass prediction reaches well beyond expectations. It is absolutely not a safe bet; saying it may call into question your credibility and sanity. When it comes true, though, having said it earns you the respect of a savant. Feel free to share any of your bold ass predictions in the comments, and sign your name so we can praise your foresight in August. Here are five of my bold ass predictions for 2013.


Nick Coffee will have double-digit extra base hits.
He had zero in 2012, but his bat began livening up late and in offseason games. Nick's routinely knocking the ball over outfielders heads, and even blasting a couple monster home runs. Only 9 players in 2012 had double-digit extra base hits (6 of them with less than 15), so this is a greater feat than it at first may seem. I think he'll do it the hard way, too, by keeping it in the park for most of them: 7 doubles, 4 home runs. All this attention paid to his offense, though, will once again see Nick snubbed for a Diamond Digit.


The Westside Warriors will win the 2013 Commissioner's Cup.
There are many questions about what their final roster may be, but I'm buying the hype that Alex Shore is selling. With the list of names he's working with you can count on the Warriors running out a talented squad every game day, regardless of whether or not some pieces change from week to week. Also, even if only featured in a limited role, the addition of Sam Hatt sends Westside's stock skyrocketing. He and Shore will be a dangerous 1-2 lefty punch in the lineup, and his guidance can also calm Maclin Malloy's "Wild Thing" tendencies on the mound: making for a lights-out rotation.


Chandler Phillips will lead the league in Ks.
Chandler was fourth in 2012 with 131, just 10 shy of the league lead. He only toed the rubber in 7 games, however, for a total of 52.1 innings. While true that all the 2012 K leaders pitched between 50 and 55 innings, I expect Chandler's innings to increase to around 65 this season as he gets more regular starts. His KPI of 2.5 will see him cutting down 162 batters on the season, running away with the "K crown" as the pitchers ahead of him in 2012 are not likely to see their innings increase


The Wicked Aces will throw 5 perfect games on the season.
Justin Hughes, Evan Bischoff, and Austin Bischoff all threw one in 2012. New signing, Evan Bortmas, threw two. The bats may be bigger and the mound further, but these pitchers will just be better. Evan (Bischoff) will reprise his against King Friday; Bortmas will avenge his only loss from last season by sitting the Squirrels down; Hughes will get one against the Islanders; and Austin will come up with two in huge games: the first against El Diablos, and then a nine inning thriller against the Ducks in the playoffs as the exclamation.


Ryan Alexia will lead the league in stolen bases.
Alexia had a .377 OBP last season, which was over two-times his AVG. His second year in the league will bring an increase in number of hits, and that good eye of his will inflate his OBP into the high .400s. Expect David Buhr to employ steals intelligently as a new facet of the game. We will see Ryan turning singles or walks into doubles and scoring opportunities at will for the Belgian offense: successful in seven out of nine attempts, three of which set up a game-winning run.

Splitting the A-team: The Manchester Project

		Your Junk my Happy Zone
		by Brandon Corbett

The Manchester Punchouts may not have won the Commissioner's Cup, due to reasons ultimately anticlimactic and a little bit nauseating. However, what they were able to do is absolutely dominate the 2012 season (26-2, +160 run differential) and the individual stat categories. Punchouts owned the number-one spot in the five big offensive categories (AVG, HR, RBI, OBP, SLG%), and had the second slot in all of them except for AVG. Altogether, they filled 13 of the 25 possible slots; representing 52% of the league's offensive leaders!

It was three players filling those slots and doing all that damage: Evan Bortmas (2012 MVP, Batting Champ, co-HR King, and NWLA 1st Team Hitter), Dakota LaDouceur (2012 co-HR King and NWLA 2nd Team Hitter) and Sam Hatt, who may not have the offensive bling of his former teammates, but he does have the substance - top 5 in AVG, OBP, and RBI. Where Sam's stock really starts to shoot up, though, is on the mound. He narrowly missed out on the Clown Shu, finished the season second in Ks (138) and ERA (0.27), tied for first in wins (10), and earned a spot as an NWLA 1st Team Pitcher. Evan also gets a boost from his pitching: another NWLA 1st Team and 10 win pitcher, and top 5 finisher in K (136) and WHIP (0.94)in WSEM.

Three undeniably explosive players, who have all split up and signed with new teams. It was early in the offseason that Bortmas divulged he and Hatt may not be back for 2013, but the team might continue if someone else wanted to run it. LaDouceur was attempting to retool a Punchouts roster minus Evan and Sam. However, after Bortmas' signing with the Wicked Aces was announced in early October, LaDouceur accepted an offer to play with El Diablos in 2013. It was not until November 26th, after being courted by several captains over a parade of Thanksgiving dinners, that Sam finally announced his return to WSEM for the 2013 season, signing with the revived Westside Warriors.

Three better suitors could not have been found for the former Punchouts to spread their talents across. The impact of these free agent signings should be tremendous - assuming semi-regular participation, of course. Most early power rankings put the reigning champion Aces at the top with some combination of El Diablos, Warriors, and Ducks in spots two through four.

For the Aces, the Bortmas signing is out of Steinbrenner's book. They add a fourth pitcher with a sub-1.00 ERA, and third with a WHIP below 1.00. The team already ran a three/four man rotation last season with brothers Austin and Evan Bischoff, Justin Hughes, and Joel Crozier. So, having many effective options to run out is not new territory for them. That said, Bortmas' biggest contribution to the lineup is his bat. Last season the Aces' regulars hit between .246 and .291; Bortmas hit nearly .100 points higher with a .389 AVG. The Aces team hit 18 HR; Bortmas hit 20. Couple his power with moving into Poolside Park for a possible 14 games, and the new Evan may put up crazy numbers in 2013. What has already happened is a dominant Aces pitching staff not only got padded, but just added lot of firepower behind it.

Similarly, what LaDouceur brings to El Diablos is a huge bat to run out at the top of their lineup. 2012 RoTY, Kyle Tomlinson (.346 AVG, .515 SLG), prefers batting further down in the four spot. So, being able to slide LaDouceur (.339, .835) in at the top of the order will still bring up strong El Diablos at-bats more often in games. In 2012 it took Dakota until his sixth game to record his first hit. However, after that, he was only held hitless in two games for the rest of the season. Chandler Phillips and Craig Skinner have El Diablos pitching well-stocked, so the key to El Diablos getting the most impact from this signing seems to be, simply, getting Dakota out to games early and often.

Hatt provides a fantastic player to lean on early in the season for Alex Shore and a Warriors roster returning many players who have taken a year off, and bringing in a new crop of rookies. Having Hatt's arm in the rotation could give Maclin Malloy time to find the form he is capable of possessing on the mound. At the plate, Hatt and Shore are similar hitters: lefties with a good deal of power and solid contact. Also, once on base, both are smart, aggressive baserunners making them a dangerous duo to build a lineup around. This signing has the makings of one that can push the Warriors up to the front of the line to play for a Commissioner's Cup.

The chance of former Punchouts returning to the WSEM Championship Series looks promising. The fact that we very well may see them on both sides of it is enticing, in that we may finally get the chance to see these stars play for the Commissioner's Cup!

Get into my Yard, III - The Westside Reservation

		Your Junk my Happy Zone
		by Brandon Corbett

When last we loitered on the land of others and littered it with lavish words it was at our southernmost field, Frenchtown Field in Monroe County. Today we stick with the "F," but flip the compass and travel to the most northern site to feature Wiffle in Southeast Michigan action: The Westside Reservation in Farmington. Carl and I were ecstatic when the Warriors announced mid-season that they were building a field, as that gave us fields in three counties! That is an impressive way to increase the size of your footprint.

The journey to getting the Westside Reservation built was not an easy one, however. The initial field location - a little league sized ballfield with a grass infield, benches, and a backstop - had to be abandoned due to conflicts with a home-owners association and painting lines on the field. Hey! Remember that "angry neighbors" stat from earlier this season? "Chalk" up a couple more for their mid-season resurgence! Never one to give up on his team or vision, Alex Shore, captain of the Warriors, had a back up plan ready to go no more than a day later it seemed. [Insert gag about Alex being quick at everything he does here.]

The second field location, the Reservation we all know and love (or hate), is located in the vacant back lot of a Church that is kind enough to let us park in their lot. According to Shore, the Church was excited that someone asked to do something with the land, as it usually just went used. The land itself is a hard, shallow clay surface with a slight roll in the infield, which makes for some interesting bounces on ground balls. While topography and ground conditions are unlikely to have been studied beforehand, this actually is something that plays into the Warriors aggressive style. Waiting back to field a ball can lead to mistakes, while charging in will limit the chances at the ball taking odd hops. Above ground the field is covered in fuller, nicer grass than other fields in the league. Note: I did not say longer. The Warriors do a good job making sure the field is cut into good playing condition before games. It is nice to have a playing surface that is not a putting green, like Frenchtown, a semi-arid savanna, like the Drey, or a jungle, like Lafayette.

One fault with the Reservation is a result of the hard ground. It is impossible to pound the stakes for the silt fence all the way into the ground, and there is a four to six inch gap left between the ground and bottom of the fence. When the first games were played ground-rule doubles were frequent. The problem was quickly rectified by instating a new ground rule: when the ball goes under the fence, the runners go back to the last base touched (excluding home-to-first, where the runner is given first). It is a fair solution that nullifies what would otherwise be an unavoidable, yet considerable problem with the field construction.

The fence is still the most talked about aspect of the Reservation. Although, with that ground rule in place, players are free to talk about the dimensions of the fence instead of how it sits. A topic much more baseball, and much more fun! The first build of the field had a fairly standard, elliptical outfield wall. However, with Shore being a lefty, so few other lefties in the league, and at least one team building their field to screw lefties, the Warriors redesigned the outfield wall to lefty-friendly accommodations. [Unfortunately, no pictures of the new dimensions are available.] There is a short-porch in right field approximately 60-65' down the line and running perpendicular through right-center, before jumping straight back to a deep center field estimated around 110', and coming around to a fairly average 85' down the left field line. Many opponents call bullshit on Shore's friendly confines, but hey, is that not why you build a home field? To have an advantage? To build to your strengths or opponents' weaknesses? As a righty who can only hit pull field and a fan of odd, extreme field design, I simultaneously bitch about the short porch because I cannot hit into it, and praise the clever creativity of the complete asymmetry and the huge leap in depth; my left brain hates it, my right brain cannot help but love it. The Reservation easily gets the award for "most off the wall wall!"

Every WSEM team but the DeLoppes made the trip to play at the Reservation this year. I cannot tell you how happy that makes me. I am proud of Shore and the Warriors for putting it together, and of the Commandos, Ass Kickers, Git r' Done guys, Mattseals, Squirrels, and most of all the Belgian Wiffles for making the trip. More than what happens on the field, this league and this game as a whole is about giving guys the opportunity to make something: a field they can be proud of, or just a memory of a once-in-a-lifetime experience taking the team bus to Farmington to swing plastic on wacky dimensions behind a church. "Once" because the Warriors will not be returning to WSEM next year, as their roster is heading off to college. So, even if the home field advantage of the Westside Reservation could not get the Warriors past the Ass Kickers in the first-round in 2011, hopefully, "hey, remember that summer we were in a Wiffleball League together and built that awesome/ridiculous/ridculously awesome field?" will be a question asked to spark conversation by the 2011 Westside Warriors years down the road.

Here is a montage thrown together by their captain for Westside's 2011 season:
(It includes a few shots we do not have from around the Reservation.)

In the Cards #5: Shane Myers

In the Cards #5: Shane Myers
Westside Warriors

Shane Myers was thrust into Wiffle in Southeast Michigan as an emergency replacement for the Westside Warriors on May 14th. All he did in that performance was hit 2 HR, drive in 5 RBI, bat .600, and slug .867 to lead the Warrior's offensive charge on the day. Captain Alex Shore was quick to bump Shane up from substitute to a spot on the full time roster.

Since that time he has played in just four more games, although that number may be reduced on account of the forfeits two weeks ago. In those four games, though, he has done nothing but continue to bolster his numbers. His AVG is good enough for #3 in the league (.472), has tripled his RBI total from his first day (15), crossed the plate 12 times, and is at a .750 SLG%. Shane has also tacked on 13 BBs for good measure. In only one game has Myers had an OBP below .400, while he has posted that number above .700 three times. He is an offensive machine!

Still, his contributions slip largely under the radar. Even his captain, Shore, was shocked when he saw Myers' .472 avg near the top of the leader board. "What?! Shane Myers is third in hitting?," to paraphrase Alex's reaction. Shane's a quiet guy (at least around most of the league) on a loud team full of big numbers. So, it's not surprising that his efforts are overlooked. He shares a clubhouse with Maclin Malloy and all the chatter of his pitching dominance, Matt Whelan and his outstanding offensive numbers, and Alex Shore who... do we really need to same more? Really it is the perfect atmosphere for a player like Shane to thrive: the opponents concentrate on the rest of his roster, and before they know what's happened Myers has blown the game wide open. With the black uniforms that the Warriors wear he is already primed for the assassin's role.

Shane's 2011 stats (as of June 30th) to complete the card treatment:

Player	PA	AB	H	BB	HR	RS	AVG	OBP	SLG	RBI
Shane Myers	49	36	17	13	3	12	.472	.612	.750	15

Oh, Hey Todd.

		Your Junk my Happy Zone
		by Brandon Corbett

So far this season WSEM has gotten away virtually Todd free it seems. You remember Todd, right? So, where has he been? The DeLoppes have played all of their games in the friendly confines of Frenchtown Field, and you can confidently say that the little specter's one-nutted curse has not affected them. Likewise the Commandos, who will play their first road games this weekend, have rather been blessed with what many believe is an overachieving .500 record at home to start the season. Who knows? Maybe the wretched weather we have had over the start of most of the season made him decide to loom over India a bit longer after the World Cup of Cricket for a rash of spontaneous holiday haunting. Or maybe he has been here all along and was the weather that has been plaguing us. Well wherever Todd has been, his hex unquestionably made its first huge supernatural play against the home team in WSEM league games.

The Westside Warriors opened their Westside Reservation on Sunday with what was to be a four game series against Git r' Done. However, they only played two, and only five complete innings at that. No, it was not on behalf of the weather; it was high 70s and sunny. It was at the behest of the de-balled and bereft Todd. The Warriors were mercied quickly in both games, and just as swiftly the minds of the team were distracted and floating this way and that on anything but the game. At one point Warriors outfielder Nick Woods was seen texting on his phone in the field, possessed by Todd who was likely prank texting the Detroit Cricket Club; the records of the texts in question have yet to be released to prove this. The sense of "don't wanna be here" ectoplasm emanating off the Warriors is the most severe amplification of Todd's abilities to affect the concentration and skill level of a wiffleball home team yet seen. Maybe he brought back some new tricks from his recent stint in India?

Nick Woods caught on film possessed by Todd sending spooky,
yet horribly out-dated with early 80s slang text messages.

One thing is undeniable about Todd since his return, though: he is much more thorough, much more ruthless, he is not after-living within limits or playing by any rules. Not only did he destroy the Warriors' will to win or compete on the field, but his twisted hex followed the players into the clubhouse and in its insatiable evil is threatening to disenfranchise the team. Literally. Disenfranchise: as in to no longer be a franchise. The team's complacent, unenthusiastic attitude has pushed captain Alex Shore about as far as he is willing to go. Alex, for his part, seems to be immune to Todd's non-corporeal wiles; or maybe Todd's just such a sick bastard now that he just wants to watch someone suffer while he intertwines his tricks. Whether or not Alex is the chosen one to ultimately defeat Todd or if he is just another pawn, talk over the past week has set in motion the possible folding of his Westside Warriors and signing with another team to finish the 2011 season and beyond. I suppose we can answer the "where has Todd been" question, though: in Farmington, nefariously plotting. He seems to have put all the pieces in place and pulled the strings perfectly to enact his plan and exact his revenge.

Is this hooded figure Todd admiring his handiwork
from the outfield at the Westside Reservation?

What a motherfucker! But even if Todd is able to take down one of our teams with his curse, we will not let it infect, hang over, or haunt the rest of the league or this season. If it comes to it, we will play with seven teams; one or two of whom's roster will get a great pick-me-up addition and new found life in the clubhouse. What will not happen is that we will not let losing one team mean we lose the league, our simultaneous sense of comradery and competition, or site of what we want WSEM to become. Sure, looking at the standings week after week and seeing that team permanently relegated to the 8th spot will be disappointing, but it doesn't weaken the league. It could actually do a couple things to boost the competition and mentality of the league: 1) There would be a play-off bye to shoot for, so teams may fight for that through the last day of the season. 2) The level of enthusiasm off the field and energy on the field would jump through the roof (if we had a domed field). The players who would be lost were apathetic about the game and league, but the ones who would stay to picked up by other teams would be playing out of their minds to prove themselves and show their former teammates what they left behind. So, everyone who remains in WSEM is enthusiastic and involved in the league, all about it. Try and find something bad about that!

74

		Coffee Time
		by Carl Coffee

With this being our inaugural season of Wiffle in Southeast Michigan, we really do not know what to expect. After years of playing pick-up games, traveling across state lines to play in tournaments, and hosting our own tournaments, we have finally made enough wiffle connections to start an actual league. We have seven solid teams who will all be competitive, and with any luck that number will soon be eight. Oh yeah, and we also have a rivalry… Oh, do we have a serious rivalry! Two of our teams are made up entirely of high schoolers, and there is absolutely no love lost between these guys.

Git r’ Done made their debut in our August 2009 tournament and really did not make much of an impression. They went two and out, but still had a blast, got a taste for the game, and kept in touch. They returned the following year and had a shockingly deep run, finishing second at the Rally Around the Flag-a-Palooza tournament in June, making themselves a threat to be reckoned with. The Westside Warriors debuted in that same Flag-a-Palooza tournament and did pretty well, and then finished second at the Hoppe's in September with a three-man roster in their second tournament.

There are a lot of similarities in the teams’ on field successes: Git r’ Done’s 2010 record was 6-7, Westside’s was 7-6, and both have played in and lost a championship game, and boy-oh-boy do they like to throw around talk of their high points and head-to-head escapades. Since both of these teams are filled with Generation Yers, they are very active on the league's facebook page. Dennis Pearson, captain of Git r’ Done made a recent post boasting that he is pitching 74 mph and his pitches are "hittin the strike zone" and that post has produced an amazing string of 100 comments! Alex Shore and rookie Tom Heffernan of the Warriors led the charge to dispute Dennis's claims. Shore quickly stated, “last time I checked that 74 mph pitch was in the dirt and you issued more walks (than) the three day march for breast cancer,” and one of Tom’s first lashings, “I’m jackin two out on you. Don't worry I’ll watch for you hanging your head when I’m trotting around the bases.” Dennis held his ground: “don’t worry (you) won’t be able to hit it and it’s gunna be strike out city… (we’ll) see when (I’m) blowin it right pass (you) make (you) look stupid,” and Dennis even threw down a gauntlet for the Warriors, “don’t worry. If it’s against (you) guys (I’ll) make sure I pitch the whole day.” It has been incredibly entertaining to watch the rivalry build up, and many other league members have chimed in. Michael Constanti of the Ass Kickers shrugged off Dennis’s confidence mockingly, “bring that shit to my kitchen and (I’ll) put that in the train tracks at Constanti Field.” DeLoppes captain, Chad Hoppe, digs the enthusiasm, “I love how the West Side/ Git r’ Done rivalry didn’t miss a beat.... The damn season hasn't even started yet!” The back-and-forth trash talk between the younger teams has really started to ramp up the excitement for the start of the season.

A scene from the genesis of the Westside Warriors /
Git r' Done rivalry on field at the 2010 Flag-a-Palooza

Just what else, tangible, has this rivalry produced for the league, you ask? Well, Git r’ Done and the Westside Warriors are now scheduled to kick off the regular season on April 30th at Chad Hoppe’s field. Chad has proposed hosting a tri-meet, which will also include the DeLoppes, with each team playing two games against each other. Even though I am sure that the Warriors and Git r' Done will meet at the preseason tournament on April 16th, I still cannot wait to watch these guys play on opening day. In fact, the whole WSEM front office is opting out of playing on opening day to take in these three series and whatever fallout comes from them. WSEM Sec. of Defense, Brandon Corbett, issued a memo to me with this message, “April 30th, whatever time: I'm bringing peanuts, some choice adult beverages, kicking back and will be thrilled to watch these games go down! Carl, forewarning, even if it is opening day of the season, I'm taking 4/30 off as a vacation day,” and I agree one-hundred percent with his request!

So, as the founder and co-commissioner of this league, as well as captain of a squad, I for one am very excited to have such a heated rivalry in our ranks already. It is easily the number one storyline in the league going into the season, and I can't wait to see how it all pans out. Who do I think has the better team? Gun to my head, I would say the Warriors, but if Dennis has dialed in his accuracy, then he has the ability to be a star and change that prediction. There you have it, folks! Rivalries! Nothing else like them! The MLB has Red Sox/Yankees, college football has OSU/UofM, college basketball has Duke/UNC, and the WSEM has Warriors/Git r’ Done!

-

Carl Coffee

Flying Squirrels, 18, SS

Commissioner, League's Counselor, and all around Cool Guy

Team Tuesdays: Westside Warriors

When a bunch of unknown high schoolers showed up to play in our tournament last June, I really didn't know what to think. Would they be cocky? Would they be competitive? Would they be able to handle the trash talk and dish it back? Would they show? Or would these guys from the northern suburbs be overwhelmed, disinterested and never play again? Well, much to my delight and for the good of the game, the Westside Warriors were confident, into wiffle, competitive, and they were talkers. Oh, were they talkers!

The first thing I noticed about the Warriors as they swaggered toward the fields was their very well made, lettered hockey style black jerseys. Is it smart to wear black jerseys in the summer? Well, maybe not, but it sends a message and if any team can pull it off, it is these guys. These high school seniors with their black jerseys, wicked sunburns, and fearless attitudes may seem standoffish at first, but once you talk to them the back-and-forth jokes and jabs start, and your preconceived notions evaporate quickly.

Now batting... batting... batting... batting...
Cool: confident and competitive, if likely not by temperature

The Warriors are led by captain Alex Shore. His left handed power bat combined with top speed makes him a dangerous hitter. He also has a 3-2 tournament pitching record with 43 strike outs. When you combine power, speed, stellar defense and pitching, you have a nice player there. Although Alex excels in those aspects of the game, he isn't the best pitcher or hitter on his team. The pitching ace of the Warriors is Maclin Malloy. In 4 games Malloy went 3-1 with 26 strike outs along with a 1.43 ERA. When the Warriors have Malloy on the mound, they will be a tough team to beat. The Warriors top bat is Nick Woods. Woods is one of the smartest hitters in the league. His patience and timely hitting should scare even the best pitchers in the league. Lost in the shuffle is Matt Whelan. Whelan along with Shore, Whelan was the only Warrior able to play in both the June and September tournaments. In the June tournament, he led the Warriors with 12 hits. Greg Voutsos, who only played in the September tournament, is an RBI machine. He had a tournament leading 11. Wesley Papacharalambous also has tournament experience, and hopes to rebound after a sub-par performance last June. Wesley did have 3 RBIs, so he can come through with a hit in the clutch even on an off day. The Warriors made a couple big splashes in their lineup this offseason in the signing of Tom Heffernan, a wiffle rookie with a power bat, and PJ Nowak, who has committed to Yale to play baseball, so you know he will be a threat in WSEM.

Won't lie; I'm not sure what's happening here. I just want to throw out sweet nicknames!
"Shoeless Joe" Matt Whelan collides with "Michael Jordan tongue" Maclin Malloy
as he flips the ball toward the mound? (Or a still from a Godzilla movie?)

Alex has assembled a great roster. The Warriors strength is their speed and patience. They can win games by taking walks and then showing off their heads-up baserunning. They are an average hitting team, but with one year of experience under their belts and signing Heffernan, they will likely bring those numbers up and move toward becoming elite. The biggest question mark with the Warriors is their pitching; the Warriors aren't sure if they can rely on Malloy consistently, and their only other proven pitcher is Alex. They will need another pitcher to step up if they want to stay competitive over the length of a four-month season.

I look forward to seeing how the Warriors play this season. The enthusiasm, good-natured ribbing, and competitive edge they bring to the game are some of the things that have boosted interested in wiffle and helped make this league a reality. These guys have fun when they are on the field, and when you play against them that fun is contagious!

Team Page: http://wiffleinsemiteams.blogspot.com/2011/01/westside-warriors.html

-
Carl Coffee
Flying Squirrels, 18, SS
Ass of an Insistent Traveling Secretary